Two Sides of Love
by greys.endoftheworld
Summary: This one-shot/one chapter story is about Miranda Bailey and Ben Warren. It takes place around their wedding and their honeymoon. Miranda loves Ben, but she is anxious about their upcoming wedding. She wonders if it's something that she wants to go through with. Contains dialogue from S9. This was requested and I hope everyone gets a kick out of it!


**Two Sides of Love**

Miranda Bailey was five-foot inches, five-foot-one if she was wearing her favorite pair of CROCS, the red ones with the cute, black patterns on them. But she commanded respect wherever she went. It must have been something about her aura, but no one bothered to cross her unless they'd absolutely lost their mind. As she made her way to OR 1, she was greeted by several members of the staff. She smiled politely and kept moving. As a General surgeon Attending at Seattle Grace Mercy West, she had to be focused. Like a laser. She scrubbed in at the automatic sink in the scrub room. After she finished, she made the sign of the cross on her body before stepping over the threshold and into the operating room. Literally, her sanctuary. She checked around the room and made sure everything was as it should be before—"Scalpel," she said firmly and confidently. She took a deep breath and made a deep, straight cut. Blood worked its way out of the incision. Beneath her mask, she smiled. Being a surgeon is all she'd ever wanted to be. She would cut into her least favorite stuffed animals and then use her mother's sewing kit to repair what she'd torn. She would time herself, perfecting her stitching technique, as best she could, and giving great patient care as she worked. Miranda pushed her desk to the center of the room and with the door closed and the music lowly humming, she worked on her bears and ducks and rabbits (never dolls, they looked too much like real people). Helping them, stuffing their cotton back in and saving them from certain deaths. Surgery was all she wanted to do.

When she was eighteen, Miranda met the man she would eventually marry, Tucker Jones. He was the one guy in the whole world who took the time to get to know her. They spent hours on the phone, months dating and years married. At some point, being married tried to creep its way to number one, but it always fell short. Although Tucker was a decent husband, he loved her, he wasn't the spotlight of her life; he knew it and she knew it; her career was. Miranda loved him, but she couldn't let him stop her from achieving her goals. He was also a good man and together they'd built a comfortable life and eventually, they'd had a child. After trying for seven long years, they'd given up. It just… wasn't meant to be. But one rainy afternoon, when they'd both had the day off, which never happened, they'd made love. It wasn't their regular lovemaking or the kind they'd had when they'd first gotten together, this time was different, so much lust flowed between them, it was almost as if they were different people. Nine months later—Poof! A child. Though it had been a little more difficult than "poof"! The best thing she ever did, the best part of her, was her son, William George Bailey Jones, nicknamed "Tuck". What Miranda hadn't known that surgery was actually second on her list with "being a mother" sliding into first place easily as soon as her child was born. It was nerve-wracking and stressful and time-consuming. But one look at his face made her remember the joy and happiness and the great privilege it was to raise a human. She loved to watch him grow, she couldn't believe that he'd ever been the size of a pea, growing in her belly, or even small enough to hold with one hand. Or even light enough to pick up without grunting. Thinking about her son put a huge smile on her face, she couldn't wait to see him, but for now, she had to keep her attention on the patient in front of her. A patient who'd trusted that she was going to do the job she was there to do using the skills she'd been taught. "More suction," she said as she dug her hands deeper into the patient's body. "Dr. Bailey, BP's dropping," one resident, Stephanie Edwards, said. The girl was nice enough, almost too nice. Miranda wondered if she had what it took to be a hardcore surgeon.

"Give me one second," Miranda told the girl, glancing quickly at the monitor and back to the body. "Almost done."

"Pressure's still dropping," the other resident, Leah Murphy, said in a near panic.

"She said give her a second," Edwards said sternly. Miranda raised an eyebrow. Yeah, she had _it_.

"And…done. There. Got it," Miranda said as she looked at the monitor and was relieved to see the numbers rising. She gave a small, unnoticeable fist pump. Score one for the mortals! "Ready to close."

"Yes, Dr. Bailey," Edwards and Murphy said at the same time.

"Edwards, close. Murphy, assist."

Miranda took a step away from the body cavity. She glanced around the room, her eyes falling on a pair of icy blue ones, sitting in the corner. They were staring right at her from behind a masked face. The anesthesiologist. He'd been sitting there for several hours and hadn't said a word, his magazine in hand. She smiled at him. He gave her a wink and smiled back. "Great job, Dr. Bailey," the man with the eyes said.

"Why thank you, Dr. Knox," she responded. The man jerked his head up. She looked left and right. He did it again. "I don't know what that means."

"Look up," he said pointing his magazine to the OR gallery. "And… when you see it!"

Miranda's eyes followed the direction of his hand. Standing near the glass of the gallery was Dr. Ben Warren. Her boyfriend. Except he wasn't her boyfriend anymore, technically, he was her fiancé. She had been engaged for a few months and even though she was getting married in just a few days, she still wasn't used to using the term. _Fiancé._ It sounded so official. Her fiancé, Dr. Ben Warren, had his hands pressed against the large Plexiglas window. She could see his wedding band on his finger; it gleamed in the already bright room. She smiled so widely, she half expected her mask to rip. She held in a squeal as she waved to him casually, trying to hide her excitement. Miranda could feel her engagement ring on her chest as she waited as patiently as she could for Edwards to get finished. "Last suture going in," Edwards said. Miranda walked to the body and took a look before nodding.

"I guess we're all done here," Miranda told them as she walked towards the door, leaving her co-workers. She had things to do.

"Congratulations, Dr. Bailey," the room echoed as the automatic doors opened.

She turned around, blushing. "Thank you all." She scrubbed out and jetted out of the door in search of her… fiancé. She took a few steps into the hall, looking behind her, in the direction he should have been coming from, and ran into something both hard and soft. "OW?!" She opened her eyes and looked into the smooth brown ones of Ben Warren. "Benjamin Warren!" A smile wider than the first was plastered on her face. He grabbed her waist and she held onto his neck. He kissed her. It was short but she felt it in every fiber of her body. When they pulled away, she took his hand and lead him into the nearest on call room. He sat down on the bed and she sat next to him, their hands still entwined, their knees together. They hadn't stopped touching since they'd seen each other. Ben, in another time, was an anesthesiologist, but over the last two years he'd decided to do something different. Before he'd proposed to her (or had she proposed to him?) he'd applied to be a surgical resident at UCLA and had gotten in. It was both happy news and sad news. Happy because he would be fulfilling his dreams, sad because he would be doing it one thousand miles away. But they were making it work. He'd come home a few times and she'd been out there once. It was tough, but they were figuring it out. "I thought I wasn't going to see you for at least two more days. What are you doing here?"

"What do you mean?" He asked with a big grin. "Miranda, we're getting married." He leaned over and kissed her again.

"We are getting married, aren't we?"

He nodded. "And it shall be one of the best days of our lives."

Miranda touched his cheek. "Hello, stranger."

"Hey, baby." The bass in his voice made her heart and lips smile. She leaned in for another kiss. It had been so long. And all she really wanted in the moment was for his lips to brush hers softly. "Wait a minute," he said pulling away.

She groaned. "What?"

"Did you think that I was just going to show up to the ceremony on the wedding day? You didn't, right?"

Miranda blushed. For some reason, that's exactly what she'd been thinking. "I just assumed that you'd be so busy that you wouldn't get a chance to get away—"

"To get married?" He said with a chuckled. She nodded. "Don't be ridiculous. I am going to experience _all_ of the perks of getting married."

"Oh yeah?" She switched the position of their hands.

"Yep," he said popping the "p". "The spas, the, uh, bachelor party, all of it. And! I intend to have a good time in the process."

She laughed. "I hope not too much."

"Eh, of course not. I know I have to save some energy for the wedding night," he whispered in her ear, biting on it gently. A piece of her heart fell into her stomach. They kissed again, this one longer and more passionate. His hand found the top of her head and pushed off her scrub cap, his hands ran through her hair. He found the back of her neck, pulling her into him. Her tongue slid into his mouth. Ben started to push her back on the bed.

"No, Ben!" Miranda squealed. She stood up.

"What?"

"There will be none of _that_ until…"

"Until what?" He asked scratching his head.

"We get married!"

"We get married?" He repeated.

"Yes! You know when I wear the dress and you're in the tux and people we like and don't like sit there and watch us when we do the whole thing." She flailed her arms as she talked. Ben just looked at her with a smirk on his face. "And then there's a party with very expensive food in a very expensive place. Do I really have to tell you this?"

"Yeah," he said standing up, revealing his six-foot frame. His height never intimidated her, it comforted her. "But I say we break from tradition."

"You know what?" Miranda said cutting her eyes at him. "We've been through this, so if you want to break tradition, I suggest you find someone else to break it with." She walked toward the door in a slight fury. They'd done massive amounts of research over the course of their wedding plans, he knew that some things could be reconsidered, but others could not! Sex before they got married, even though they'd already had sex several times, plenty of times, in various places, was out of the question.

"Okay, okay, okay!" Ben said coming up behind her. He kissed behind her ear. He wasn't making this any easier. He knew that was one of her weak spots. Her knees trembled as she found herself pressed against the door, one hand scratching at the wood. The other behind her on his face feeling his beard. His body was pushed against hers, his hands above them on the door, and she could tell that he was ready. As was she, but she'd broken tradition with Tucker. Look at how that turned out, she thought as Ben kissed her shoulders. And, not for nothing, she was afraid. Afraid that if she did the same with Ben—that it would all go wrong. She bumped his body gently with hers and put her hand on the doorknob. "You're leaving?" He asked. She turned around and looked at him. It always felt like forever in between visits. Even in the midst of their conversations, she just had to stare at him. He was so handsome and sweet. She'd picked a good one. "Miranda?"

She snapped back to reality. "Yes. I've been here since seven o'clock, I've done what I'm supposed to do and I'm ready to go home."

"Okay, well, I have to make a quick stop and I will see you at home," Ben said. She tried not to smile. They'd decided to move in together a few months before they'd gotten engaged. Good thing, too. She was tired of paying her bills alone. It helped that he was there to help her. She and Tuck had been slowly integrating themselves into his apartment. When his new job offer came along and he'd proposed, they decided to find a house. Fortunately, they were able to find a decent-sized one, in a good neighborhood near a great school that wasn't too far from the hospital.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

He made a face. "I just have to make a quick stop," he said again.

"I know what you said. I want to know where you're going." Miranda crossed her arms over her chest and furrowed her brows.

"You know I love when you look at me like that," Ben said taking a step toward her.

She knew what he was doing; trying to change the topic. And she'd let him. "Fine. I'll see you at home." She'd learned to let shit go with Ben. She trusted him and that was the important thing. She leaned in and kissed his cheek and walked out of the room.

"Congratulations, Dr. Bailey," someone in light blue scrubs said. An intern or a resident, she didn't know which it was or who it was.

"Thank you," Miranda said while she continued to walk to the locker room.

Footsteps behind her signaled that Ben was catching up with her. "I'll be home shortly."

She shrugged and mumbled: "Alright."

"Miranda." He touched her elbow, stopping her in her track. He looked up and down the hall. "Something wrong?"

"No."

"'No'?" She shook her head. "Well clearly that means _yeah_ in woman talk." Miranda cracked a smile. "I love you, Miranda Bailey."

"I love you, too, Ben Warren." He kissed her quickly and walked away. In the locker room, Miranda saw a folded up sheet of paper inside of her locker. She glanced around before opening it. It was a regular sheet of printer paper, but the note wasn't typed. It was written in Ben's scratchy, yet neat penmanship. _Miranda, I just can't explain how my favorite your face is. And I can't wait to officially hear how good your name sounds next to my last name.-Benjamin_

She read it over a few times, memorizing each word and forgetting that she was ticked off with him. "Fine," she said to herself while folding up the note.

"Whatcha holding?" Callie said coming up behind her. Callie was an Orthopedic Surgeon and one of her best friends at the hospital. And though she didn't know it yet, she was also Miranda's Maid of Honor.

"Oh… nothing." Callie snatched the note out of Miranda's hand. "Hey!

Callie read it quickly. "Oh my goodness!" She squealed. "This is so beautiful."

"It's… nothing."

"It is something, Bailey," Callie said handing the note back. "Stop trying to pretend like you didn't get the sweetest guy in world." Miranda blushed. Miranda and Callie talked a little longer. "So, what are we doing for your bachelorette party?" Miranda stared at her friend. "Is your cousin… uh, shoot! What's her name? Devin! Is Devin planning something? I didn't get anything."

"No, no, she's not planning it," Miranda said talking about her cousin. She and Devin were close, really close, but Miranda didn't want to ask her. Devin had been her Maid of Honor for her wedding with Tucker and while she didn't think Devin's presence had anything to do with their failed marriage, Miranda wanted this time to be completely different.

"She's not?" Miranda shook her head. "Isn't she your Maid of Honor?"

"No, she's not."

"Is Valerie the Maid of Honor?" Callie asked referring to Miranda's older sister who was a Major in the United States Army. Miranda hadn't seen her older sister in two years and hadn't talked to her in weeks. She was currently stationed in Afghanistan. A few months ago, when Miranda had called to ask if she would be able to take a small leave of absence for the wedding, Valerie had turned her down, saying that she didn't have any time, she'd just used some to go on vacation with some friends. She wouldn't be in town for the wedding and while Miranda was mad about it, she wasn't surprised. She loved her sister with all of her heart, but her sister's level of commitment to things not concerning Valerie (or the Army) was small. Callie's voice brought her back: "Then who is?"

"You are," Miranda said simply. She took off her shoes while pulling off her shirt.

"M-me? Me. Me?" Callie put her hands on her chest. "You're sure?" Miranda nodded. "Is this because you don't have any other options?"

The question hit a soft spot: "Torres, do you want to be my Maid of Honor or not?"

"Well, when you ask like that, how can I refuse?" Callie said sarcastically making both women laugh.

"Plus, you're my best friend and you went with me to get my dress and you're a good person and a great doctor and you can be trusted," Miranda added. Callie wasn't her last choice for anything. Miranda had really thought this through. She wanted Callie standing beside her as she stood in front of her friends and family and declared her love for Ben.

"Aww, Miranda. I would love to."

"Good."

"So when are your parents and the rest family getting in?"

"You know what? I don't know."

"Is Ben here?"

A smile broke across Miranda's face. "He's back already. We're meeting up at home."

"See, you got a good one," Callie. Miranda suspected that she was daydreaming about her wife, Arizona Robbins, Head of Pediatric Surgery.

"Yeah, I did," Miranda agreed. She switched her watches. One she wore everyday as a fashion piece. The other was a gift from Richard Webber, her mentor and another General Surgery Attending at the hospital.

"So, maybe I should come over tonight figure out some stuff with you since I am your 'MOH'."

"My what?"

"'MOH'. Maid of Honor. M-O-H. 'MOH'."

"Oh, 'MOH'. That's kind of cute," Miranda said pulling on her jacket. "But, uh, don't come over tonight. Maybe tomorrow." She raised an eyebrow.

"Oh. Oohhh. Well, alrighty then. I'll talk to you tomorrow," Callie said and they walked off, splitting ways at the end of the long row of lockers.

At home, Miranda lay in bed, reading. Or she was pretending to. She'd sent a text message to Ben telling him that she was at home. The TV was muted and a movie that she'd seen hundreds of times flashed across the screen. She was trying hard to wait for her fiancé, but exhaustion took over and soon she fell asleep with her book on her stomach.

" _I wanna get back before he wakes up. I'm just gonna try this sample. Chocolate schnecken. Mmm, a triumph. Well, bye-bye. Perhaps one more schnecken for the road. Do you mind?"_

Miranda and the character on the TV spoke at the same time: "When the schnecken beckons." Miranda chuckled while coming out of her temporary coma. Ben must have been back, she hardly ever went to sleep with the sound on. For her, it was the picture that lulled her to sleep. For him, it was the sound.

"Mmm, what's that?" Ben said rolling over to her. He put an arm around her waist.

"'The Birdcage'," Miranda said gesturing to the television.

"Good morning, fiancée," Ben said making her heart flutter.

"Don't 'good morning' me? What happened to you yesterday?"

"Miranda, I came in the house about an hour after you sent your message. And you were knocked out."

She blushed. "Why didn't you wake me up, Ben?"

"You'd been at the hospital all day. I figured you wanted some rest. Forgive me for being courteous," he said trying to get offended.

"You still should have—"

He rolled over to Miranda. "I know," he said on the side of her face. "My bad. My bad. My bad." He pulled her into his arms.

"I just wanted to talk to you," she said picking up her phone off of the nightstand.

Ben took the phone out of her hands. "What'd you want to talk about?" He asked kissing her. He climbed on top of her, putting her phone back on the small dresser.

She twisted her lips to the side. "I forgot."

"No, you didn't," he said kissing her forehead. "So tell me."

"We haven't seen each other in a few weeks, so I thought that we could spend a few hours catching—Ahhh!" Ben rolled their bodies suddenly, making Miranda's heart skip. She was on top now. "What are you doing!?"

"I like this view better," he said winking at her. She leaned down to hug him. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Maybe the fact that we're getting married in a few days. You haven't even seen the venue. We still have two more dance lessons left in our package. And we're supposed to meet the pastor tomorrow. There are our v-vows..." Miranda took a deep breath. "And my dress."

"What about your dress?" Ben asked, concerned. He knew the lengthy process she went through to find it, a strapless, ivory-colored dress with a medium-length train and a smooth, layered, silver-trimmed bodice decorated with a crystal, diamond-shaped design. It also had a full, taffeta-laced bottom. It was so beautiful. She couldn't wait for him to see her in it. That's if she could even get into it.

Miranda sighed and moved from on top of him and got off of the bed. "I tried it on two days ago and the thing, the seam, almost popped! Popped!" Miranda grabbed the edge of her dresser. "And so they had to work on it some more. And the assistant started talking about my silhouette and I almost lost it on her. Baby, I almost killed her. Torres had to stop me." Ben laughed. "It's not funny. And I… w-what if the damn thing doesn't fit, huh? What if I gain more weight? The damn thing is fitted, literally fitted to my body, if I—"

"Okay, just stop. You're beautiful and you know I love your body. Your silhouette is perfect." Ben touched her waist. "So stop panicking; it's all going to be fine. Shit happens. It will be okay." He stood up and moved behind her. "It will be okay," he repeated. "Alright?" Miranda nodded. "Now that that crisis has been averted, let's go have breakfast. Where's my boy?" Ben said clapping his hands. "I mean…Tuck? Where's Tuck?"

Miranda looked at him. His cheeks were reddening. She smirked. "At Tucker's," She threw on her robe and slid into her slippers. They went downstairs. Neither one spoke as they moved around the kitchen, pulling out ingredients to make their breakfasts. She knew that he wanted pancakes and he knew that she just wanted oatmeal. She'd started eating "properly" as soon as the engagement ring was on her finger. She wanted to be fit for her wedding day and now, even though she didn't think that it much mattered, she wanted to keep up with her healthy regimen.

"So that means we have the house all to ourselves," he said kissing her neck.

"We do, but what I told you yesterday will stand until we've said _I do_."

"You're not really being fair," he said sticking out his bottom lip.

She smiled. "Sit down and tell Dr. Bailey all about it."

They sat down to eat their breakfasts; she almost reached over and snatched one of his pancakes. They looked so good. He saw her eyeing his plate and offered one to her. She shook her head, holding up her bowl of oatmeal. "Do you want me to see the venue?" He asked stuffing a piece of bacon into his mouth.

What kind of question was that? Miranda eyed Ben. Of course she wanted him to see. At this point, they'd paid for it, it was theirs, but she wanted them to get a little feel of it. Personally, she loved it. And he'd only seen pictures of it, but he'd love it, too. "Roberta is meeting us there, if you want," she said referring to their wedding coordinator.

"Yes, I do. And hold up… we're supposed to be writing our vows?"

Her eyes widened. "Ben, we talked about this!" She put her spoon down on the table.

"I'm kidding, Miranda!"

"Don't kid like that!" She slapped his arm while he laughed. "It's not funny," she pouted.

"I'm sorry," he said holding up his hands. "But, relax. I've been writing them. They're being edited."

"Really?"

"Yes, really."

"Okay," she exhaled. Everything was so stressful. She wanted everything to be amazing and beautiful and perfect.

On their way to the venue, Ben informed her that he would drop her off at home once they were finished because he had to run an errand. "Another mysterious errand, hunh?"

"There's nothing mysterious about it. I just have to do something really quickly. I will be back and then we can talk dance lessons and all of that." At a red light, he tapped his cheek, gesturing for her kiss him. She feigned like it was something that she didn't want to. But it was all she wanted to do. She loved the feel of his skin under her lips. As she leaned over to kiss him, he turned his head to look at the road as the light turned green.

Miranda was pleased when Ben showed interest in every aspect of their wedding. Even to the point that he often got on her nerves. She would cause arguments when she reminded him that this wasn't her first one. But he always forgave her for not waiting for him and everything would be fine. Together they'd interviewed several wedding planners. Most of them had all asked them the same questions like clockwork, the first question always being: _What's your dream venue?_ When they'd interviewed their current wedding planner, Roberta Fisk, the first question she'd asked was what were their non-negotiables. "I'm sorry, what is a non-negotiable?" Ben asked.

"Seriously?" Miranda had looked at him.

"No, of c-course not. I know what they are." Ben had taken a sip of the lemon water that she'd offered to them.

Roberta had jumped in: "For your wedding, what important details are not flexible? What won't you be able to negotiate? For example, do you guys want a DJ or do you want a live band? Or is that something that can be worked out?" They'd looked at each other and then at the dark-skinned woman with curly hair falling down her back. "Do you want a cocktail hour before the wedding or is that out of the question?"

Miranda didn't know what Ben was thinking, but after they'd talked a little longer and Roberta stood up to get them her portfolio, Miranda said: "I like her."

"Me, too," he'd said putting his glass down as Roberta came back into the room.

"So?" Roberta said.

"I don't know about my fiancée, but I haven't even thought about the non-negotiables," Ben said. "But we'll think about it and we'll be in touch." He stood up.

Miranda pulled him back down. "What? No," the General surgeon said. She looked at Roberta. "We're hiring you."

That's what Miranda remembered as they walked into the building where they'd have their wedding ceremony and reception. In a loft in the heart of Seattle, with a perfect view of all of the sights, is where their wedding would take place. Miranda leaned on the balcony of the room where the reception would take place with Ben behind her gripping the railing. "This is perfect," he whispered in her ear. His breath floated through her, making the hairs on her body stand up.

"It really is," she said turning around and kissing him.

"Ahem!" Roberta said. They smiled and shook hands with her. "Let's get to it, shall we?"

"Yes!" Miranda squealed. She was a little more than excited. She was so tired of doing wedding things without Ben. She was also tired of making plans over the phone.

"Let's do it," Ben said picking up Miranda's hand.

"So, soon this place will be filled with your, the decoration for the wedding will be set up. The vendors have been prepped. The photographer is booked and I have a backup photographer ready to go just in case." Miranda smiled.

"Uh, what about the DJ?" Ben asked.

Roberta flipped through a notebook that had their names and picture on it. "The entertainment company promised me that they will send their best DJ." Ben nodded. "And the cost is reasonable, too."

"We haven't paid them yet?" He asked. She shook her head. He pulled his phone and his checkbook from his pocket. "How much is it?"

"Well, they have the deposit, but they don't need the rest for another day or so."

"Let's take care of it now. I don't want to have to think about it later," Miranda said gesturing at Ben. Roberta told him the price and he wrote and ripped out the check handing it to the planner. She quickly wrote up his receipt.

The three of them continued their tour of the venue and checked out the two rooms where the couple would be able to prep separately before the ceremony. "After the ceremony, the photographer will take pictures of you two and of your bridal party, Miranda. And of you and your groomsmen, Ben. Which reminds me—who are your groomsmen and who's in your bridal party?" Roberta asked pointing from Ben to Miranda. She got her pen ready to write.

"I have a Maid of Honor and… that's it. Maybe one other person, maybe two. Maybe three. I don't know yet."

"Okay. Ben?"

"My best man is my brother, Curt. And my groomsmen will be my coworker, Knox, and my cousins, Frankie and Eddie, but I'm willing to cut any of them to keep the numbers on either side even. I know you like that." Miranda started to protest. "I don't even like half of them, so it'll be okay." The three of them laughed again.

Roberta wrote some things in her notebook. "Alright. And another thing. Your dance lessons. You have two more left on the package."

"I just told him that," Miranda said nudging Ben with her body.

"They have an opening today at…," Roberta looked at her phone. "At six."

Ben looked at Miranda. "Good for you?"

"I should be asking you about that, Mr. Mysterious."

"Making secret wedding plans, Ben?" Roberta asked with a grin.

He laughed. "No, not without you and definitely without my wife…to-be," he said. The three of them laughed.

"So, Miranda, I got your email and your voicemail about your dress." Miranda gave Ben an irritated look. He touched her shoulders. "The main fitter was out sick and she's going to need you to come in tomorrow. Is that good?" Roberta asked looking at Miranda.

Miranda sighed deeply. "That's perfect." They said goodbye to Roberta and went back to the car. "Are you making secret wedding plans?"

"No, Miranda."

"You know I don't like surprises, Benjamin Warren," she said as he pulled out of the parking lot.

"There are no sur—wait, are you saying you don't want any surprises or is that your way of saying that you _do_ want surprises."

She glared at him. "You know what I mean."

He picked up her hand and touched it lightly with his lips. "I know."

He pulled into their driveway and kept the car running while they talked. "The only thing that is completely finished is our honeymoon."

"The Bahamas," Ben said smiling at her. He turned in his seat and kissed her lips. "It's going to be perfect." Ben touched the back of her neck and pulled her in for another kiss.

"I can't wait." Miranda touched his chin. His beard was getting long and wild. "Mmm."

"Mmm, what? You don't like that."

"I'm just hoping that you'll get a haircut before we step into our next life together." They chuckled.

"I will. I will. I'm actually on my way to get it cut now which is…"

"Why you're dropping me off at home," Miranda said. He winked at her. "I get it."

"I will see you soon," he told her as she got out of the car and walked up the front stairs.

Her phone rang as soon as she closed the door. It was Callie. "Okay, so you kind of put me in a tight spot, but it's fine because you know I thrive under pressure." Miranda nodded and set her purse on the table and sat down on the sofa. She curled her feet underneath her body. "I've invited a bunch of people to your bridal shower; everyone was basically waiting for the invitation. I got Arizona and Meredith to run to check a few stores and get stuff for the goody bags and balloons and all that crap. I booked a suite at the Hyatt and a limo. Um, someone's brother or sister or cousin or whatever owns a bar so after we drop our stuff off at the hotel, we can hit the—"

"I hope there won't be any strippers at this bar."

"N-no, of course not," Callie stuttered. She could be a bad liar sometimes.

"You're crossing strippers off of your list, aren't you?"

"Yes." They laughed. "You know Ben will have some at his," Callie countered.

"That's fine… we talked about it. He knows the rules."

"Fine. Fine. No strippers."

"None, Torres."

"I got it, Bailey." Miranda giggled. Callie went through the rest of the list. "And that's it."

"Wait, you did all that in one day?" Miranda asked. She imagined Callie nodding. "Wow, actually, it sounds like it's going to be a fun night."

"Yeah and it's in two days."

"Whatever happened to a bachelorette party being the night before the wedding?" Miranda asked.

"Do you want to have a hangover on your wedding day?" Callie responded.

"Very true."

"I'm the Maid of Honor, let me handle things."

"You're right."

"Thank you."

They talked a little longer before Callie hung up and went back to work. Miranda was off today. Richard had tried getting her to take the entire week off, but she just couldn't do it. It didn't seem right, so she was off for a day or so and would go to work for a few hours before she got married. Miranda sat on the sofa and listened to her stomach growl a few times. One thing she didn't feel like doing was cooking. She got into her car and went into the downtown area looking for something to eat. She still had a few more hours before their dance lesson at six. Enough time to go over her to-do lists and maybe even take a nap. She spotted Ben's car in front of a row of stores and restaurant. She recognized it by the long scratch on the side where Tuck had it with his bike a week ago. She double parked beside him and put on her hazard lights. Miranda pulled out her phone and called him. "Hey, baby, I can't talk right now I'm… at the bank."

Miranda gritted her teeth. They both banked at Bank of America. And it wasn't even on this block. They complained about it all of the time. A whole street full of banks and Bank of America wasn't on it. It was located two blocks away. It was madness. Miranda's heart dropped. Ben was lying. Right to her face, over the phone. Of course, he'd lied before. He'd told her that he hadn't given her kid twelve pounds of candy when he did. And he'd told her that he cooked when he hadn't. But a lie about his whereabouts, she couldn't remember one time when that had happened. She didn't think she'd ever want to know what it felt like to have him tell her something that was so completely untrue. They always said they'd tell each other the truth and now…"Okay."

"Okay. I'll see you at home, beautiful." She hung and found a park down the street. She walked up the street toward Ben's car peeking in each restaurant and store. She finally found him in a café at the end of the block. He looked so good with his fresh cut hair. She wanted to hold him. She looked at him again and realized that he was having lunch with someone. He was facing the door; she hid behind a large sign trying to stay out sight.

She stared at the back of the head of the person he was having lunch with. It was a woman. Yep, definitely a woman. Thin and Black with short hair. She was talking quickly. Ben was trying to keep up and his head bounced up and down. "They're laughing," she said to herself.

"Ma'am? Would you like to come in?" Someone asked. She waved them off. Didn't they see that she was busy spying? "Ooookay."

Miranda turned her attention back to her fiancé and his company. The waiter was bringing the check back. The woman reached for it, but Ben stopped her, pulling the check from the waiter's hands. Miranda's blood boiled as the woman touched Ben's hand for a second and retracted it, putting her hand in her lap. Miranda walked away before the two of them stood up from the table. She'd seen enough. She walked back to her car and drove home. No longer hungry, she went to the bedroom that she shared with Ben and crawled into it, falling asleep before her mind could fully process what she'd just witnessed. "Miranda?" Someone was calling her name. She kept her eyes closed. She wasn't ready to face Ben the Liar. "It's five-thirty," he said kissing her cheek. One of her eyes fluttered open. "Getting some rest before our dance lesson?" Ben kissed her lips quickly and put his arms around her body.

"Yeah, I guess," she said rolling out of the bed. Miranda stretched her arms.

"What's wrong?" He asked sitting up in the bed.

"Nothing. Let's go."

Miranda slid behind the wheel of her car and waited for Ben to get in the car next to her. He buckled his seatbelt as she pulled out of their driveway. They didn't speak for the whole ride to the dance studio. The radio stayed off, too. It was an eerie silence. When they got to the studio, Ben came around the car and opened her door. He took her hand and helped her out of the car: "So, you're really not going to tell me why you're pissed?"

"Why don't you ask the person you had lunch with," she said maneuvering around him.

"What?"

"We're late."

"What?" Ben said again.

They walked up the two flights of stairs to the mini-ballroom. There were three other couples taking lessons as well. "Alright, ladies and gentlemen!" The dance instructor, Mani, told them. She was a short lady with light brown skin and a slick ponytail. "Shoes and socks off. We're going barefoot for the first dance." She waited a minute for everyone to get out of their shoes. "Fellas, ask your lady if they want to dance."

"May I?" Ben asked with his gorgeous smile shining. He held out his hand. Miranda gritted her teeth together to stop a smile from breaking through. Miranda looked at his hand for a second before taking it. He pulled her close to his body. "It was only lunch. It, literally—doesn't mean what you think," he whispered in her ear.

"Who was it?" She asked. If it was nothing, he could tell her who it was.

"I can't tell you," he told her. Her body clenched.

"One, two, three. One, two, three," Mani was chanting, clapping her hands. She came up beside Ben and Miranda. "Hello, beautiful couple."

"Hi," they murmured.

"Such poor tension."

"Tension isn't good for dancing, right?" Ben asked, sucking up to Mani. Miranda looked at him and rolled her eyes, still concentrating on her steps.

"And spin!" The couples in the class spun. "No, tension can be good if it's put to the right use," Mani told them. "The way you two are moving, I can tell that she doesn't trust you, Ben." Ben looked at Miranda and cocked his head to the side. "Justin!" She waved over her assistant, a short, white man with white hair. "Tension." He nodded. They stiffened their bodies and glided around the room, making the other three couples stop and stare. "We're upset. That's clear. Our faces have no smiles. And even angry, we're moving together, using the other to our advantage. Still in sync." When they finished, they bowed while the class applauded.

Miranda and Ben joined hands. She made her body stiff as she followed him around the dance floor. They held each other tightly. She wouldn't tell him right now, but she loved being in his arms. They always made her feel protected and loved. And while she was mad at him, she was also turned on. If they weren't in an invisible, one-sided fight, they would have probably gone home and had some sexy and fun foreplay. He spun her out, she glared at him. She was trying to keep her cool, but she was furious. Why did he wait until he got back to Seattle to start having secret lunches? Did that mean he was having not-secret lunches in California? He pulled her back in, their chests pressed together. "Yes," Mani hissed, standing next to them, dancing alone. "I feel it. The good tension. The sexy tension."

"It's not what you think, Miranda," Ben told her, his lips hitting her cheek. Miranda looked at him, looked into his brown eyes, wanting to believe him. But, she'd been cheated on before. Thinking about it made her sick—physically. And she didn't want to go through that again. When the class was over, Miranda drove them back home. She was still hungry, but instead of stopping, she just decided to go home and have some cereal.

In bed, Ben nestled up to her, his face in her back. "I love you," he said. She ignored him, her hands beneath her head and her eyes closed. "I know you hear me." She shrugged. He took a deep breath, blowing the air from his nostrils. She knew that sigh. She called it his "angry breath". He really only did it when she'd upset him. "You know that you have to say it back, even if we're fighting or mad at each other—which we're not."

"I am mad at you."

"Bu—"

"I love you," she said cutting him off. She could practically hear a smile cross his face.

"And, baby, you're jumping to conclusions. As if you don't know the man you're about to marry."

"I'm still in the dark as to who you had lunch with. If it's not a big deal, if it's not what I think… just tell me because what I'm thinking is that you're cheating on me."

Ben sat up and reached over her body and turned on the lamp that was on the nightstand. He stretched his arm up and flicked on the light switch. Miranda sat up as well, her eyes watery. "Miranda." She used her hands to wipe her face. "Miranda, look at me." Reluctantly, she raised her head and looked at her fiancé. There seemed to be pain in his eyes. He took her hands, forcing her to adjust her body. He touched Miranda's chin. "You can be mad at me for a lot of things. If I don't call when I'm supposed to or if I let Tuck stay up too late or even if I sleep on your side of the bed, but you should never be mad at me because you think I'm cheating. I'm not. I won't. I don't have a reason to."

"So if you had a reason to, you would?"

"Wow, Miranda. I say all of that you and…fine, be mad. Just know that I love you. Goodnight." Ben turned over without turning off the lights. Miranda lay on her back and stared at the fan spinning slowly and silently on their ceiling. _Their ceiling._ Her hands went to her head. She was such an idiot. They weren't married…yet. But they shared a love, shared their life. She exhaled. He wasn't the type. Miranda had a bad habit of mentally comparing Ben and Tucker, but they weren't anything alike. Ben wouldn't do that. She was being foolish. She turned out the lights and moved closer to him, wrapping her arms around him and pulling herself closer to him. "Figured it out, did you?" He asked in the darkness. She smiled while placing a soft kiss on his back. He turned to her and put his lips on hers, sliding his tongue into her mouth. She whimpered. She actually let go of a whimper, his kiss felt so good and it was something that she wished she could do every day. His hands touched her back making her melt. Ben kissed her neck. She licked her lips as he made his way down her body, moving slowly.

She grabbed his head. "No."

"No?"

"No." Ben poked out his lips. "Focus on our honeymoon."

"You are wicked, woman," Ben said as kissed once more. She laughed as they moved together, falling asleep.

Miranda was no longer mad at Ben, but that didn't stop her subconscious from creating perfectly terrifying dreams about Ben and a short-haired, no-faced beauty. She woke up in the middle of the night and looked over at her soon-to-be husband. His chest moved up and down as he slept. She turned on the TV and watched until she fell asleep again. At work the next day, she worked diligently. One of her favorite things in the world was delivering good news to the families of the patients that she operated on. Their bright faces always reminded her of why she became a doctor. The ability to save lives gave her so much pleasure. As she made her way to the locker room, she was stopped in the hallway by April Kepner, a young and perky doctor. "Dr. Bailey, I am so excited for your wedding. I've had my dress picked out for weeks."

Miranda smiled. "Thank you, Kepner."

"You and Dr. Warren make a great couple."

Miranda nodded and walked away, trying to avoid anymore conversation. The more people talked to her about her wedding, the more nervous she got. She'd gone back to the dress shop to try on her dress and the entire time, people talked about her wedding and the wedding of another woman also getting fitted. The woman was happy to answer any questions and talk off the ears of anyone who'd listen, but Miranda only responded to questions that were specifically about the dress. Luckily, the dress fit perfectly. Miranda had looked into the mirror and smiled. Finally, it was done. Miranda pushed a piece of gum into her mouth. While she changed, Callie came up to her, hurriedly. "Hey, I only have a second before I have to go into surgery."

"Then if it's about my bachelorette party or the wedding, it can wait."

"No, it can't."

Miranda sighed and looked at her friend. "Then what is it?"

"The guest list for your party tomorrow night is up to nearly ten people. You didn't give me a cutoff number, so I'm assuming that that's enough."

"Ten is a plenty. Thank you, Torres," Miranda said sincerely. "This party better be something good if I have to stare at all of those faces all night."

"I think we'll have fun," Callie responded with a wink.

"No strippers, Torres."

"I haven't hired any, but this party will be awesome and the food will be great."

"I love great food," Miranda told her. She didn't like going to places or events with bad food.

"I know." Callie looked at her watch. "And I have to go, so I'll see you."

At home, after dinner, she sat on the sofa with her legs crossed. Tuck and Ben were watching cartoons before Tuck had to go to bed. As she fiddled with her tablet, looking over her lists, deleting and adding things, she watched her boys. During commercials, they had intense discussions about whatever show they happened to be watching. She checked the time. "William George?"

"Time for bed," he answered with a sigh. She nodded. Tuck stood up and hugged Ben who'd sat up. Ben playfully wrestled him down to the ground with Tuck with the boy laughing maniacally and screaming for Miranda to help him. When Ben let go, he walked over to Miranda. She watched him. The nearly seven year old moved so gracefully. Playing sports for two years had made him confident and agile. He was her complexion and just as lanky as his father was at that age. He sat down next to her with a smile plastered on his face. He was definitely her twin. She opened her arms and was relieved when he fell into her arms. He held him tightly. Nothing matched the love that she felt for that little boy. He was literally a piece of her and she was so proud of the person that he was becoming. "Goodnight, mommy."

"Goodnight, baby," she said kissing his head. He scurried out of her arms and up the stairs. Miranda and Ben listened to the distinct sounds of Tuck brushing his teeth and going into his room. She heard the music for his video game.

"Turn it off," she and Ben said at the same time. They stared at each other, their heads cocked to the side. Miranda stood up and grabbed the TV remote from the coffee table. Ben reached up and touched her hand pulling her on the floor next to him. She giggled loudly. He pushed some hair back from her face and kissed her cheek.

"You're still going to try and get some, aren't you?" She asked between kisses. He kept his lips attached to hers as he nodded. "Even though I said we're waiting."

He nodded again, his hand sliding to her waist. "You decided that, not me."

"The other part is that you'll drop it."

"It's been weeks, Miranda."

"We have phone sex, Benjamin," she whispered as if there was a possibility that her son would hear them. "And plenty of it." She felt his body stiffen.

"Can we have some now?" He asked with a smirk. She pursed her lips and looked down at him. "I'm only kidding. I won't bring it up again.

"I'm not intentionally holding out on you," she told him touching his face. His haircut was turning her on.

"It feels that way."

"I just don't want to—"

"Tradition. I got it."

"Are you ready?" Callie asked sneaking up behind Miranda.

Miranda looked at the other surgeon over her shoulder. "For?"

"For tonight!" Miranda raised an eyebrow. What was she talking about? "Your bachelorette party!" Callie said with a huge smile.

"Oh, right. Insert squeals of joy here," Miranda mumbled while she changed her shoes.

"If you don't sound more excited than that, I'll cancel the whole damn thing," Callie said with a straight face.

"How much money did you put up for it?" Miranda asked.

"None, really."

"And my husband-to-be?"

"Not as much as you'd think," Callie said quickly. Why didn't people just give her straight answers? Miranda squished up her face into a disappointing look, Callie smiled widely. "But, trust me, it's all good. You'll love it." Her pager went off. She walked away saying: "Get excited, girl!"

"Don't tell me to get excited. I'll get excited when I'm ready to get excited," Miranda grumbled with her face in the locker.

"Everything okay in there, Mumbles?" Ben said touching her waist. She jumped. "Sorry."

"No, I wasn't… expecting you." She turned around in his arms. He kissed her. "What's-what are you doing?"

"Holding my fiancé," he said into her ear.

"Your bachelor party is tonight, right?"

"Yes, ma'am," Ben said reaching around her and picking up a granola bar.

"Hey, hands off!" She said snatching it from his hands.

"Sounds like our fourth date," he said making her laugh. Her head fell into his chest. Her phone beeped.

"I have to, um, go," she said pushing her hair back. She pulled it into a ponytail.

"Want to get a late lunch?" He asked.

"Can't. I have surgery in a bit."

"Oh! Right! Okay. Well, call me when you're finished." She smiled and kissed his cheek before walking off.

Miranda finished getting dressed and looked at herself in the mirror. She'd received a copy of the invitation for the party. Apparently it was her... " _Last Fling before the Ring_?" Ben said looking at the email Callie had sent her. Miranda glared at him. "Oh, it's, uh… it's nice. It has a nice _ring_ to it." Her lip quivered as she tried not to smile. "See what I did there?"

Miranda smiled and turned to look at him. He was sitting on the bed, shirtless, in a pair of jeans. His festivities wouldn't start for a few hours. "How do I look?" She asked.

Ben scratched his head. "Yeah, I don't think you should go out."

"I don't understand," she said staring at him.

"I don't think you should go out. I can't be any clearer than that."

She put her hands on her hips and turned back around to look in the mirror. The invitation said that everyone should just wear blue or black jeans and their "dancing shoes". Miranda put on a pair of black jeans and a white tank top. In front of her dresser were two pairs of shoes, one was a pair of black boots and the other was a pair of all-black high heels. She took her phone from Ben and looked at the invitation again. It also mentioned that there were going to be games and drinking and dinner and drinking and dancing and drinking. It all sounded it really fun. The excitement was finally kicking in. She put her phone in her bra. "Well, I still don't understand. You don't like the outfit?"

"I love the outfit," he said getting off of the bed. "I just don't want other guys enjoying it, too." Miranda hit him playfully. "You look gorgeous, Miranda." Ben put his fingers in her belt loops.

"Thank you, Benjamin." He kissed her cheek. "Was that so hard?"

He kissed her naked shoulders. "Yes. It was, actually." She laughed and pushed him off of her. "And go with the heels." Miranda nodded. "What do you ladies have planned for the night?"

"I don't have anything planned, but my maid of honor has everything planned. I just have to show up and be excited and look great."

"You're killing in the 'looks' department," Ben said sitting back on the bed.

She blew him a kiss. "And what's on the agenda for you, young man?" She put on a gold necklace and a pair of gold earrings.

"Maybe to the club, a few bars, nothing too crazy."

"To the strip club?" Miranda said. She sat on the edge of the bed and slid into her black heels.

"Maybe, unless you don't feel comfortable with me going to one. Because, you know, uh, Frankie really set everything up." She nodded and looked at him as he stammered out his truth.

"We've talked about it," she reminded him. Ben held out his hand. "I'm cool with it."

"You're cool?" Ben asked pulling her to him. She smiled at him. "Is it bad that I just want to stay here in bed with you all night?"

"That sounds wonderful."

"Let's do it."

"What?" She laughed and tossing a leg over his body. He touched her thigh, moving his hand up to her butt. She closed her eyes briefly. "We can't do that." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Can we?"

"No, we can't," he said pushing her hair back. "Plus, I shelled out more than a few bucks for your party, so you're going."

"Fine. And the day after tomorrow, we'll get married."

"Fine," Ben echoed. "And the night after tomorrow, we'll have sex."

"Hallelujah," Miranda said. Her phone rang inside of her bra. Callie shouted for her to come outside. "I gotta go."

"Okay. I will see you tomorrow, baby."

She kissed him deeply, sliding her hand up his shirtless back, softly clawing at his skin. She felt him getting hard and she was getting just as aroused. For a second she wondered if they had enough time for a quick quickie before she had to leave. Her phone rang again, interrupting her thoughts. "I'm coming!" She yelled at her phone.

"Okay, ladies," Callie said as the group gathered in a large room in an Italian food restaurant. They'd just finished a photo scavenger hunt, which was so much fun. Miranda loved scavenger hunts. They took guts and were a chance to do things one wouldn't ordinarily do. She looked around at her guests: Callie, of course, Meredith Grey, former student of Miranda's and fellow General surgery Attending. Arizona was also there, along with three of Miranda's cousins, Devin, Brooke and Saniyah. One of the hospital's most beloved nurses and a good friend of Miranda's, Jessica Bokhee filled out the guest list. And, Teddy Altman, former head of Cardiology, had also come back to town for Miranda's wedding. The nine of them were having a ball in their custom-made shirts as they travelled from place to place. Her guests' black shirts said: "'I do' Crew." Miranda's white shirt read: "Buy me a shot, I'm tying the knot." At first, Miranda refused to put it on, it wasn't classy. "It's not supposed to be classy, it's supposed to be fun."

"Right," the other seven ladies agreed.

"Fine," Miranda said and put on the shirt to the cheers of her guests. Miranda looked over at her best friend; so glad that she chosen Callie to be her Maid of Honor. Everything was great. "So, the terrific trifecta of Miranda, Meredith and Brooke have won the scavenger hunt with being the only groups to get a kiss on the cheek by a police officer and the business card with the name 'Benjamin' on it." Miranda took a sip of her wine. She already had a nice buzz going. She'd had more shots tonight than the last six months combined. Everyone clapped. "And they each get a special gift inside of their goody bags."

"What's the prize?" Devin asked. She lifted her gray box braids and let them fall over her shoulders.

"It's a… um, surprise for now," Callie said. Devin shrugged and continued her conversation with Teddy. The food came and they all chatted and listened to music that blared from Arizona's phone and Bluetooth speaker.

Miranda stood up and cleared her throat. The music stopped. "Thank you all for being here and supporting me. I'm happy to be marrying a great man. And—"

"A fine ass man," Devin piped up making the room crack up. Miranda waved off her cousin with a huge smile on her face. Her cousin wasn't lying. Ben was easily the sexiest man on the planet. And he was hers.

"And I'm blessed to have you ladies behind me. So, thanks."

"Awww," the room echoed. Arizona reached back to turn on the music.

Callie held up her hand. "Since everyone has paid for the spa treatment, we'll be heading over to the spa once we wrap up here."

"We're not going home?" Miranda asked. She looked at Meredith who shook her head.

"Bailey, we have a suite and we have the spa and all the stuff, no going home," Meredith told her.

"Well, can I call my fiancé?" Miranda asked.

"Sure. And I want to call and check on the kids," Meredith said looking at Callie and Arizona.

Miranda took another sip of her drink. "And, uh, you two," she said pointing at Arizona and Meredith

"Us?" Meredith piped up.

Miranda nodded. "Yes. You."

"Why us and not her?" Arizona said. "Because Callie already knows, but when you get the wedding, don't sit down."

"What do you mean 'don't sit down'?" Arizona asked.

"Just… find a place and stand…there."

"You want us to stand in the back?" Meredith asked.

"Then we won't be able to hear anything," Arizona chirped.

"Stand in the damn front," Miranda said making them smile.

"And block everyone's view?" Arizona asked. Miranda rolled her eyes.

"Just pick a spot! It's not complicated. Ugh, you know, people allow you guys to open them up with a knife, but if they knew you couldn't follow a simple instruction they would run like the wind," Miranda said staring at them. She was so glad that the other half of the bachelorette party had their attention focused elsewhere. This was becoming difficult.

"Guys," Callie interrupted. "She's trying to ask you if you would do her the honor of being her bridesmaids."

"Everything's not about them," Miranda said. "Just put on a dress and don't sit down."

After their spa treatments, everyone huddled in the huge, four bedroom suite dressed in pajama pants that had "'I Do' Crew" up the leg. "Alright, ladies, we're coming to the end of a fabulous night."

"Hell yeah," Miranda said fisting the air. Jessica looked at her and started laughing uncontrollably.

"So, we're going to put on a movie and I suspect that everyone will be sleep before it gets to the good part." The nine women made a large pallet on the floor. Miranda found herself between Devin and Callie. For some reason, she expected a little hostility between the women. Thankfully, there wasn't any. As the movie dragged on, Miranda could hear soft snores coming from the women. She picked up her phone and walked to the balcony, picking up a robe along the way. She dialed Ben's number. He picked up the third ring. She needed to talk to him. He didn't answer when she'd called earlier.

"Hey, baby," he said in a raspy voice. "My phone was dead earlier."

"Sure, sure," she said feigning annoyance.

"Seriously."

"I'm kidding. I know."

"What's up? Are you on your way home?"

"No, we're at the hotel. Everyone's asleep."

"Want me to come and scoop you up?"

"You're finished your night?"

"Yep. Once Knox threw up in front a stripper he was trying to have sex with, it all went downhill from there."

"Ewww," Miranda said giggling. "He should know better than that."

They talked a little longer. "You're sure you don't want me to come and get you."

Miranda looked at the women asleep on the floor. "Yeah, I'm sure."

"Hey, I love you."

"I love you, baby," she said. He burped. "That was piggish."

"Excuse me," he said chuckling.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

It was a good thing that Miranda had a late day after her bridal shower. She was able to get a lot of rest and wake up fresh and ready to go. At the hospital, she saw a new patient and gave them some news. "Syl, the TIPSS procedure you had last month failed."

Sylvia Pressman sat on the bed and listened. She was a middle-aged woman with blonde hair that was pulled into a ponytail. She was also a recovering alcoholic. She pushed her glasses up on her face. "What does that mean?"

"It means you're lucky you got sober young," Miranda told her. "Edwards?"

"So, Mrs. Pressman, we're going to put in a portacaval shunt," Edwards said speaking softly, but confidently.

"Is that a complicated procedure?" Sylvia asked. "Maybe I should call someone?"

"You don't have to," someone said coming in the door. "I'm here, sweetheart."

A guy breezed in and dumped his coat and briefcase on an empty chair. A guy with wide eyes and short black hair. He moved next to the bed. "Douglas! What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I came to see you, of course." Sylvia smiled as he leaned down to kiss her. "I called your job and they said you hadn't been there in a week. And I remembered you like hibernating in hospitals, so I looked for you here." Sylvia laughed and buried her face into his shirt. "Plus, you're my wife, so I have to keep tabs on you."

"You're her husband and you didn't know that she hadn't been to work in a week?" A resident, Jo Wilson, said.

"Yeah, well, we have a long-distance marriage," Douglas said sitting on her bed. He squeezed her hand.

"Is that even a thing?" Wilson asked.

Miranda looked at the floor, embarrassed. "Out," she said. Wilson apologized and started to leave.

"It's okay," Sylvia said stopping the girl. "It's not the first time we've heard something like that."

"Long-distance marriages are real and not as rare as some people think. Couples live separately for a lot of reasons," Douglas agreed. He kissed Sylvia's hand. "Work, school, family commitments, military."

"And at least this one lives in Texas and not in Tokyo or Florida or Budapest," Sylvia said. Everyone except Miranda laughed. It felt like Ben lived in all of those places at once. She straightened her spine.

"So, doc, about that procedure?" Douglas said. "Is it complicated?"

Miranda looked into Sylvia and Douglas' eyes. She hated this part. "It is very complicated. It has only a 50% survival rate."

"Dr. Bailey, I don't like that," Sylvia's husband said.

"Do I have any other options?" Sylvia asked wiping a tear from her face. Miranda sighed. "Okay, then."

"Will you be the one to do it?" Douglas asked letting the tears fall from his face, unashamed.

"Of course," Miranda told them.

"What is your record?" Sylvia asked. "Successes and failures."

"I've performed the surgery about five times," Miranda told them.

"And?" Sylvia said.

"I've had two patients survive," she admitted.

"It's perfect then," Sylvia said to the surprise of her husband and everyone else in the room, including Miranda. "I'll be your three out of six." Miranda finished talking to the Pressmans and walked out of their room feeling a little bit better than she walked in. It always helped when the patients weren't panicking and freaking out.

Miranda walked into the Attending lounge to see Owen Hunt, Chief of Trauma, sitting on the sofa, falling asleep. Her phone slipped out of her hand and hit the table hard, jolting him awake. "Hey! Um, Bailey. How are the, uh, wedding plans going?"

"They're fine, just fine," she answered.

"Family's in town?" She nodded. "Good, good. I'm learning a lot about you lately."

"Excuse me?"

"About you and… and your family. Stuff I didn't know."

"Oh yeah? Like what?" She asked raising her eyebrow." Owen started to turn red. "Warren told me that you had a sister."

She nodded. "Yes, I do. an older sister."

"I didn't know that."

"She's actually a Major in the military, much like yourself."

"Awesome, awesome. Is she coming back for the wedding?" Miranda cleared her throat. "I'm sorry if that's too personal of a question."

"No, it's fine. I wish she was," Miranda said opening up the Hunt. "But, uh, she won't be there. She couldn't get away."

"I know how that is," he said taking his phone from his pocket. His phone beeped. He excused himself and left with a small wave. Miranda's phone beeped right after and she left to begin Sylvia's surgery.

"The incision begins along the left subcostal margin, across the right rectus and extending well into the flank," Miranda said as she started surgery on Sylvia Pressman. A packed OR gallery watched her moves. Every cut was made with confidence as she fixed her patient. Miranda finished and with her residents beside her, she walked out into the waiting room and looked around for Douglas. She found him in the corner talking on the phone. When they approached, he paused his conversation.

"Dr. Bailey, how… how is she?" He jumped out of his chair. "Please tell me she's number three." Douglas put his hands together.

"She's number three," Miranda said with a smile.

Douglas burst into tears and hugged Miranda tightly. "She's number three!" He kissed her cheek. "Thank you, Dr. Bailey! Thank you so much! We are so grateful for you." Miranda held onto him. "Can I see her? Please?"

"Of course." Douglas kissed her again. "Dr. Edwards will show you to her room where she's recovering." After they walked off, Miranda headed to the Nurses' Station where she signed a few charts and was out of the door before anyone could ask her any questions or favors. Getting home, she realized that she couldn't park in her driveway; it was full and the closest available park was three houses down from hers. "Oh, great, everyone's here," she said. She sat in her car and dropped her head onto the wheel. She wasn't really tired, but she also didn't have the energy to go into her house that was filled with their family. Everyone asking questions and touching her and talking. Sometimes she didn't mind, but right now, she just wanted some peace and quiet. Someone behind her was honking their horn obnoxiously. Who the hell is that? She thought. She looked out of her side view mirror to see Ben getting out of his car. She laughed as she rolled down her window as he leaned in to kiss her. "They're in there."

"I know," he said with a smile. "I'm the one who let them in." They laughed. It felt so good to laugh together, in person. A lot of people took that simple pleasure for granted, but for her, it was something that she'd truly missed. Ben walked around the car and got into the passenger's seat. "Hey, baby."

"Hey, nothing!" She said rolling down his window. "Why'd you let those people into my house?"

"Our house," he corrected. She ran her tongue along the top row of her teeth. "And because we're getting married tomorrow."

Miranda beamed at him. "We are."

He touched her chin. "We need our parents to help us with the final planning. And, I like having them here and Tuck likes having them here and…"

"I like having them here," she mumbled.

"Exactly. Or at least you're going to pretend to." He pulled her chin toward him. "Now bring those lips… to me."

As they kissed, a knock on the top of the car startled her. She touched her chest. "Daddy!" William Bailey was one of the most intimidating men she'd ever met, standing over six feet with an icy glare. But he had a soft heart and, for that, Miranda loved him so much. Even at her age, Miranda still got a little embarrassed about her parents catching her kissing. She blushed and wiped her lips.

Ben shook hands with her father and then picked up Miranda's hand. "Sir," Ben said while stroking her knuckles.

"Future son-in-law," William said leaning on the car. Miranda's heart did a back flip. She didn't think her father would like any guy she dated, let alone one that she married, but he'd taken to Tucker quickly and to Ben even faster. "Your mothers need your help. So you two stop necking and get in there." He knocked on the car one more time and walked off.

"Do we have to?" She whined.

"They'll be gone soon. And we'll be gone even sooner," he said rolling up his window.

"To the Bahamas," she said biting her bottom lip.

"Unless…you want to stay local."

"It would save us some money," she joked.

He shook his head fiercely. "And miss the chance of seeing you in a bathing suit?" He chuckled. "Hell no."

The inside of Miranda's house was usually quiet, unless they were having Family Game Night. Or if Ben had her pinned to any random piece of furniture (those days and nights were never quiet), but it was never as busy as it was when they stepped over the threshold. Miranda watched as her son buzzed by her with several of her younger cousins following him, she reached out and pulled his arm. "Mommy!"

"Yes, son, hello," she said as she kissed his forehead. She hugged the other little ones and they raced off. Miranda smelled the most familiar smell in the whole world, her mother's chopped barbeque. She made a beeline for the kitchen. When she saw her mother, Elena, she hugged her tightly. She also hugged Ben's mother, Julia, who was pulling macaroni and cheese out of the oven. "My God, everything smells so good."

"Yes, we know," Elena said. Miranda smiled. "How was your bachelorette party?"

"I'm sure Devin, B and Niyah told you everything," Miranda said washing her hands. If she wasn't hungry before, she was hungry now. "But, uh, we had a great time."

"Were there any strippers?" Julia asked winking at Miranda.

"Nope," Devin said coming into the kitchen. Brooke and Saniyah were right behind her. She pulled a beer from the refrigerator. "The first shower I've been to without them."

"Bu—" Miranda started.

"But it was also one of the best ones." Devin nodded at Miranda. "Callie did a great job."

"Yeah, those pajamas feel so good, but that entire bag was really nice though," Brooke agree.

"The girl has style," Saniyah said fixing a small plate of food. Ben's older sister, Angela and his cousin, Chanel, came strolling into the kitchen. They greeted everyone and sat on empty chairs around the table.

"So, are you ready for tomorrow?" Devin asked.

Miranda rolled her eyes and shook her head, then smiled. "Of course. It's Ben." The women nodded.

"So, are you having a car pick you up at the house tomorrow?" Elena asked.

"Oh no! I am, uh, going in tomorrow… to the hospital."

"On your wedding day!?" Julia and Elena said together.

"Yes, on my wedding day." Everyone stared at her. "It's just for a few hours. Just to clear my head."

"I don't know, baby," Julia said.

"It will be so hectic and I'll just need time to myself." The women talked a little longer, discussing hairstyles and makeup color. Brooke, who was a professional makeup artist, would be doing her makeup. Saniyah, who owned her own salon, would do her hair.

Ben walked into the kitchen. "Mmm, mmm, mmm, aye, Pops, come here. This kitchen is swimming with fabulous women." He hugged and kissed both Julia and Elena; and then, made his way around the room. When he got to Miranda, he held out his arms and she walked into them with a wide smile on her face. She heard the room "awww" and shook her head. Ben put his arms around her waist as his father came into the kitchen.

"Good Lord!" Ben's father, Anthony, said coming into the kitchen. He was the older, heavier version of Ben. Miranda gave him a hug. "Willy B, come and look at these beauties."

Miranda smiled and shook her head at her family. They all sat down at the long table in the dining room, talking loudly and boisterously. Most of the conversation was about the wedding, putting her on edge. Ben was hosting a wedding brunch the next morning and the house would be even more packed than it'd been at dinner. She tried swallowing, her mouth going dry. She just needed a sign from him or from anything, something that would keep her calm right now because she was spiraling out. Miranda kept trying to make eye contact with Ben, but he was always in the middle of a conversation. As she took a sip of her wine, she looked around the room and her eyes landed on him. He was staring at her. "I love you," he mouthed across the table amidst the clanging silverware and chattering adults.

Goose bumps covered her body. "I love you," she mouthed back making him smile widely.

"The ceremony is at four o'clock, so what time are you driving over to the loft, Miranda?" Brooke asked.

"You're driving?" Ben asked. Everyone turned in her direction. She nodded. "But I'm having a car come to pick you up."

"I don't want a car," she said quickly with a slight laugh. The table was silent. "Besides, we don't have to spend money on a car when I can just drive over. It'll only take ten or fifteen minutes." Ben just licked his lips and nodded. The table was so quiet. Miranda made accidental eye contact with Ben's sister, Angela. They'd never really hung out alone or even had a personal conversation longer than a few minutes, but they were cool.

Angela smiled and turned to Saniyah: "So, um, Saniyah, what kind of style were you thinking for the wedding?" Angela asked. She looked back at Miranda and winked. Thankfully, the conversations continued with laughter, making Miranda feel slightly better.

After several hours, their families left, taking Tuck with them. Miranda was all too happy to let him hang out with his cousins who didn't see that often, which left Miranda and Ben in the house alone. She walked out of the bathroom and crawled into bed next to her fiancé. "Aren't we not supposed to see one another before the wedding?" He asked in the darkness. They were lying next to each other, not touching. They weren't mad at each other, it just worked out like that. They were comfortable.

"I think that's the day of the wedding," she said with closed eyes. "And that's just an ancient tradition. It has nothing to do with our culture, nothing to do with us."

"More ancient than not having sex before the wedding?" He asked.

"Yes," she said harshly.

"Miranda, I was only kidding. What's going on?" She shook her head. "You've been dodgy all night." She didn't say anything. He turned on the light and turned toward her. He reached out to put his arm around her. She climbed off of the bed, grabbed her robe and went downstairs. Ben's thumping footsteps were behind her. "Okay," he said catching up to her. "I'm listening."

Miranda moved around the kitchen. "I'm just a little nervous."

"Mmhmm." He opened the refrigerator for her.

"You know that I eat when I'm nervous."

"Or happy or cold," he added with a smile. She winked at him. "Or bored."

"Shut it."

"Baby…" Miranda put her plate in the microwave and sat down at the island in the kitchen. The island was something that she didn't even want. Ben was the one who'd convinced her to get it. He saw breakfast at it every morning and sex on it on freaky nights, she saw her young son running into it and bleeding from the head. He'd laughed at her dramatic visual and told her that Tuck would be fine. "I can't help you if I don't know what the problem is."

"You're not nervous?"

He shrugged. "Not now. I'm concerned that we're in the kitchen on the night, or morning; however you look at it—"

She checked the clock. It was just hitting 10 o'clock. "Night."

"Okay, night, before our wedding."

"Yeah," she said smiling. Ben put her plate in front of her and grabbed two forks. "Let's go into the living room."

Once they got settled with her plate and some drinks in the living room, he said: "So?"

"So what?" She snapped. "Sorry."

"Miranda, it's just us. You can let your guard down."

She took a deep breath. They'd never had any problems talking. No matter what the subject happened to be, but the things going on in her head were kind of frightening. "I think I love you too much."

"Yeah?"

Miranda played with the fork in her hand. "Before you…I was fine. I was okay. I was a little lonely, a lot single, but I was fine." She picked up his hand, interlacing her fingers between his. Perfect fit. "And, now, I don't want to th-think about a day without you. Believe me, I've tried and I've cried doing it. I am 100% focused on my son and you and I'm 100% about my career. I have goals and every day I get closer toward those goals, I can't change my work habits, so don't ask me to."

"I wouldn't do that. I know how important being a surgeon is to you. I'm an intern in LA, hoping to feel that way one day."

"Good because my career always seemed to be a bargaining chip with Tucker."

"Honey…" She shook her head. "I know it takes up a lot of time, but this is what I'm signing up for—our lives together."

"I want this to work," she said in a determined voice. "I need for this to work."

"Hey, look, it will," he said stroking her face, his fingers touching her lips.

She scoffed. "You can't promise that." She waved him off. Her mind flashed back to the shooting that happened at the hospital a few years back. It was the most terrifying and worst day of her life. After staring into the barrel of a shooter's gun, she couldn't even breathe the Seattle air properly, she found herself forgetting the simplest tasks; she slept with locked doors with her son right next to her, everything unnerved her. And she'd broken up with Ben. And it was one of the hardest choices that she'd ever had to make. She'd loved him so much and he was always there for her, but he wasn't there when Gary Clark had a gun pointed in her face or the faces of the other people during his rampage. He wasn't there and she resented him for it. She wanted him to be broken like she was, so she'd broken his heart, maybe because she needed a break, maybe to even the score, the reasoning didn't matter, he was hurt and so was she. She looked up at Ben, he was so handsome. His eyes were focused. She imagined that he was thinking about the shooting, too. That had been the most horrible part of their relationship. "You cannot promise me that."

"And yet I have." The way he said it, she believed him. Miranda leaned in and kissed Ben him, a stray tear slid down her face. "I'm sorry for making us be apart so long. I know that our apartness is one of the reasons you're so nervous." She nodded and slipped her hand into the sleeve of his t-shirt. "I also know that you're thinking about the shooting." Her heart was pounding in her chest. "I'm sorry for that, I truly am, but we are better because of it. And I love you harder and we're so much stronger." She smiled.

They continued to eat, quiet for a long time. Some of her fears were subsiding and being replaced by soft anxieties. "I miss you so much. Every day. And Tuck misses you."

"I know." He sighed and lifted his glass of water up to his lips. "Once I was thinking that—"

"Don't _even_ tell me you thought about quitting?" She looked at him. Stone was softer than her glare.

"I didn't think about it very long."

"Why?"

"Because I imagined that look that you're giving me right now." Miranda smiled, breaking her glare. "I've missed you guys a lot, too, but I try to get back here to see you as often as I can."

"You're still gone all of the time. Even when we're together, I'm counting the hours until you have to hop on a plane and be gone—again."

Ben scratched behind his ear. "I'm trying, Miranda."

"I know."

"I feel the same way. It's never a vacation when we're together nowadays because you'll get pulled into surgery or there's an event to go to, shit that eats into our time. And I wonder if sometimes… if you've metsomeoneelse," Ben said purposely running his words together.

"What?"

"If you've met someone else."

"When? Could it be when I'm in meetings or labs that take half of the day? Or when I'm picking up or dropping my son off at school? Or perhaps when I'm elbow deep in a patients' guts."

"Hey, that's how we met," Ben said with a smirk.

"No, we met because you'd forgotten how to do your job."

"Your beauty distracted me," he said touching her leg, running a hand up her thigh, she slapped it away. A smile crawled across her face as he winked at her.

"And what about you?"

"What about me?"

"Have you met anyone?" Miranda briefly remembered the secret lunch that he had with the unknown woman. She mentioned it to Ben.

"I thought we were past that."

"You lied to me," she said.

"I didn't lie."

"When I called you, you weren't at the bank like you said. That, boyfriend, is a lie."

"One, I'm your fiancé, and two…," his voice trailed off. She had him. "I… "

"So are you having an affair? Because secret food meetings is h-how...everything fell apart with Tucker and my—I can't afford to go through that again."

"I'm not Tucker. I wouldn't hurt you. I'm at UCLA trying to become a doctor, trying to save lives, not trying to find another woman."

"So you say."

"It took too long to find you," he said rubbing his temple. "I don't have time to break-in another wife-to-be, then ask her to move in with me and then propose. I just don't have the time."

"Ass," Miranda said shoving him. He caught her hands. "You're an ass." Ben pulled her in and kissed her deeply. His hands found their way between her legs and into her shorts. He was just about to enter territory he hadn't been in a while. She bit her bottom lip and pushed his hand away.

He put his head on her chest and growled. "You're going to make me curse."

"You can curse," she said sassily. "Won't do you any good." She looked down at his tented pants.

"You're going to make me explode!" He said adjusting the lower half of his body. She made a face that showed that she was uninterested, but she was so very interested. She felt like she might explode as well. "And let me guess, you don't care."

"I care. I just can't help you until tomorrow," she laughed. He looked at the clock above the TV. It read 12:30. She followed his gaze. "After the ceremony."

His tongue slid across his top lip. "Okay," he said with a soft smile. "I miss waking up to you and when we wash dishes together and doing all of the little stuff together."

"Going to the park with Tuck."

"Going shopping."

"Reading the newspaper."

"Texting that I'll see you soon—" She started to cut him off. "And then showing up fifteen minutes later."

Miranda's eyes started to water. "When you whisper in my ear."

Ben inhaled and leaned close to her, his lips on her ear. "I can't do that from a thousand miles away," he whispered. A chill went through her body. She shivered making them laugh. "But I love hearing your voice on the phone every night or morning." Miranda blushed. "And our sessions of hot phone sex." She hit his chest. "Oww!" He rubbed the spot where she'd hit him. "And I when I tell you that I'm going to call, I make sure I call."

"You do, mostly."

"I do. I do. I need to hear your sarcasm and your laughter and hear about Tuck's school days, which is something that I'm not happy that I'm missing. But I do it because I love you and so none of it ever seems like work or, or, or a task or something that I _have_ to do. I want to do it."

"I appreciate that." She stared at him, taking him in.

"What?"

"Nothing." Miranda said getting comfortable.

"Say 'hi' then."

"Hi," she said. She touched his face, stroking his beard. She pulled him in for a soft, short kiss. Sometimes she couldn't help herself, she had to kiss him. It always seemed like his lips were waiting patiently until the next time they met hers again. Even the smallest of their kisses was electrifying and left her wanting more. She hoped he felt the same way. Lost in her own thoughts, she didn't hear him speaking.

"Miranda?"

"Sorry, yes. I'm listening." She put her hand in his. "What did you say?"

He smiled at her, shaking his head. "Nothing."

"Aww, come on. I was in my mind. What'd you say? Please?" She pouted a little.

"Okay, okay." Ben cleared his throat and Miranda listened closely. "Do you, uh… this was easier to say five minutes ago." She chuckled. "Do you mind that I, uh, think of Tuck as my son? Or like a son?" A small pop sounded in her body. Her heart was bursting. Ben thought of Tuck as his son. Honestly, she didn't know why it was such a surprise or why she suddenly felt tears in her eyes. Ben treated Tuck as if he was the one in the delivery room telling her to push. "I mean, I'm the one who got him into soccer and he really enjoys it. He always wants me to tuck him in before he goes to sleep. And I love him, Miranda. He's such a good kid and I'm glad to be in his life and I help ra—"

"I know. You are…," Miranda smiled at her fiancé. "You are a very big part of his life." Ben looked at her, waiting. "Of course. Of course, Ben." The tears which had been welling in her eyes, streamed down her face.

"I didn't mean to make you cry."

"I'm not crying."

He used his thumbs to wipe away her tears. "You're sure?"

She nodded. "If you want him, he's yours, too." Miranda and Ben laughed. "I love that you love him that much. I never knew you felt that way. So strongly about it."

"Yeah… He—I wasn't going to tell you this. This was a private conversation, but now that we're on the subject."

"Get to it, Ben Warren," she said through tears.

"After we told him about us getting married, he asked if I was his new dad."

Miranda straightened her posture. "A-a-and what did you say?"

"I told him that the relationship that we have wouldn't change, that we were still friends. That there was nothing that could change the way that I felt about him. And that I wasn't his 'new dad,' but I was kind of like a dad. I probably screwed it all up, but he seemed to have gotten what I was trying to say." Ben made a face. "Does that sound like something you'd have wanted me to say to him?" She could only nod, her voice would betray her. "And I'm not trying to replace Tucker."

"What?" Miranda said regaining her voice.

"Please don't think that's what I'm trying to do."

Miranda resisted the temptation to say what she was thinking. "That's not what I was thinking."

He sighed. "I just want to be what Webber was—is, what he is to you." Miranda smiled. Richard was basically her surrogate father. With her dad on the other side of the country, it was a great thing that she had Richard by her side to help her through her life.

Miranda leaned in and kissed him. "Tuck is so lucky that he has you."

Ben kissed her again. Her lips moved with his, the sound soft. She touched him gently, his body jerked a little. "Good. So do you feel a little bit better about marrying me?" She didn't answer right away. "Is that a no?"

"No. I do feel better, but it t was never _you._ " He nodded. "Maybe it's the wedding."

"You want to elope?"

"Yes!" She picked up her glass and took a sip. "We can go down to the courthouse like normal people do. And have a little cocktail party after. None of this lace and flower nonsense."

"If you want," Ben told her running a hand over his face.

"I couldn't do that to you." She knew he wanted a wedding; he was excited and it meant a lot to him. He cared about her and wanted to show it to everyone. And she wouldn't dare stop him. "And miss the chance to see you in a tux? Hell no."

After washing their dishes together, Miranda and Ben went upstairs and got back in bed. Both lay on their backs staring at the ceiling. Ben grabbed her hand, locking his fingers with hers. Miranda smiled and put her head on his shoulder. "What if we get married and you don't like me anymore?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you like me now, right?"

"I love you now."

"I know that, but you like me, too, yeah?" She nodded. "So what if we get married and then you realize: hey, I don't really like this guy? Then where are we?"

"Slip into your pajamas, baby, you're dreaming." She switched the position of their hands. Miranda was so drawn to him. How could he ever think she wouldn't like him? It was an irrational fear. Although she had a few irrationalities of her own. She smiled. Ben reached up and touched the top of her head. He turned to face her and kissed her forehead. She held onto him, his muscles bulging. She could feel his pulse in the crook of his arm. "I like you well enough. I'm never gonna change my mind about that," she said as he smiled on her cheek, his nose on her skin. She was suddenly aware of every part of him that was touching her. One hand in hers, the other on her back, his chest and stomach, pressed against her body. Tempting her. _One more day_ , she thought. "Do you love me?"

"That's not a question."

"Yes, it is. You know it is. Just… answer it," she said poking his chest.

"Your happiness means everything to me." Miranda grinned and kissed his lips quickly. "What about the sex?" Ben asked looking into her eyes.

She gasped. "W-what about it?"

"Do you enjoy it?"

"Of course I do," she said touching his cheek. Her palm landed on his lips and he kissed it, sending chills up and down her body.

"Same here. It's amazing." She gave him a smile which turned into a yawn. "Tired?"

She nodded. "But I don't want to go to sleep."

"Why not?"

She chuckled to herself. "Because tomorrow will be hectic and I'm not ready to face it yet." She yawned again.

"Turn over. I don't want my future wife to have bags under her eyes in pictures that we'll be looking at for decades."

She laughed and rolled to her other side. Ben's arms swallowed her. Even if she didn't get a chance to be with him every night, she took advantage of the time that they did get to spend together. She heard his breathing pattern change and she mimicked it, falling asleep wrapped up in him.

Miranda didn't need an alarm to wake up her. Her biological clock did most of the work accompanied by the sweet sound of the birds chirping outside of their window and the sun shining right in her face. She looked over at her fiancé. She exhaled and smiled. Last night, they'd had a discussion for the ages. An intimate conversation that put her at ease. Mostly. No topic was off-limits and while she was still nervous, she didn't think that feeling would go away until they were back from their honeymoon. Miranda got out of bed and took a shower. It was almost eight in the morning. She still had eight hours before she stood next to Ben and pledged her love for him. Miranda put on a pair of jeans and a nice shirt. She could change into something a little nicer when she came back for the brunch. She sat down and pulled out her phone, and began typing up a list of things she needed to do. At the top of the list: _Get married._ She also needed to get her nails done, relax, get back home for the brunch, accept the butterflies, get into her dress, email Roberta, drive to the loft, don't panic, make sure Tuck was alright. She added a few more things to her list before she woke Ben up by jabbing her finger into his side. "Yes, honey. You poked?"

"Good morning! It's our wedding day," she said falling back on the bed. "Kiss me."

He rolled on top of her and kissed her lips. He made his way down her body, pushing up her shirt and kissing her stomach and then her breasts through her bra. Miranda let a moan escape her lips. She touched the shoulders of Ben, ready to push him off. He kissed her neck once more: "Good morning, wife-to-be!" Ben got off of the bed and went into the bathroom. Miranda lay back, horny and surprised. "Are you going to be back for the brunch? Everyone's going to be there," he yelled from the bathroom.

"Who's everyone?"

"Us, Tuck, our wedding party, our—"

"Who's the wedding party?"

"Curt, Knox, Frankie and Eddie. And, I'm assuming, Torres, Grey, Robbins and Devin."

"Oh okay. Although I haven't asked Devin yet."

"Why not?" He asked sticking his head out of the bathroom.

"Awkwardness?

He shook his head and went back into the bathroom. "Just ask her."

"Our parents, our friends, the family that's in town, the Chief, Adele, some people from the hospital."

"That is a lot of people, Ben Warren," Miranda said getting off of the bed. She put on her shoes and checked the mirror quickly before putting on a light-smelling body spray.

"Yeah, but it's a special day for us and I want it to be…"

"Special," she finished for him.

"Yep."

"Well, you're going to have to go to the store because we don't have anything, especially for that amount of people."

"That's why I'm going right now." He walked up behind her, putting his lips on her neck. "So are you coming back to the brunch?"

"I will be back, but after I cross some things off of my to-do list."

He held up his hands. "Fine, fine."

She looked at the clock again. "I gotta go."

At hospital, it seemed like an ordinary day. She gave explicit directions about her patients to Kepner who immediately tried to pawn them off on her resident for the day, Leah Murphy. "It's not too much for you?" The girl stuttered. "And yet you're trying to fob it off to Petunia here with her years and years of experience in critical care." Kepner should have thanked God that both of her arms and hands were full with charts.

"I want you to relax on your honeymoon. I thought you'd be reassured by having two sets of eyes on your patients."

 _Strangulation is against the law._ "The notion of an intern handling my patients is the best way I can think of to ruin a perfectly good Mai Tai," Miranda said staring the two of them down.

"Oh, are you going someplace warm?" Kepner asked excitedly. She was definitely going for the record amount of death stares in one conversation. "We don't have to talk about it," the redhead said.

"Oh, no. I want to talk to you about my honeymoon." The young attending shook her head, her curls flapping. "The hotel, the sights. What I'm wearing on the plane, what I'm wearing on the beach."

"Leah, leave," Kepner told the resident, waving her away. "She's gone. I got this."

Miranda continued to give instructions with April following her. When they split ways, she saw her mentor, Richard Webber. "On the morning of you wedding?" He asked as she stepped off of the elevator.

"Oh, well, right about now, my house is filled with my family talking wedding stuff, makeup, my dress, shoes, my hair." She scrunched up her face.

"Just check into a hotel. Take a nice, long bath, get a manicure."

"Now, don't you start talking about hair," she told him before storming away. An hour later, while sitting alone in a room, Richard appeared again. "Still checking up on Kepner, huh?"

"It's what I was born to do," she said without looking up at him.

"I have a chole in about ten minutes." Miranda wondered where he was going with this. "In and out the whole thing should take an hour. You want to scrub in?" She looked up at his six-foot stature leaning against the threshold. "Take the edge off before you go home and get dressed?"

This is why she admired Richard Webber, her Seattle Dad, the man she looked up to, sometimes more than her own father. She sighed deeply. "You are a good man," she told him. This was exactly what she needed. She needed to take her mind off of anything wedding-related, get lost in the beauty of surgery.

"Dr. Webber!" Ben said coming into the room behind Miranda.

Richard liked Ben and loved him for Miranda. He'd expressed that sentiment in a conversation that the two of them had as Miranda's marriage with Tucker dismantled and she started dating Ben. "I like him, Mandy." She had glared at him. "Miranda." She'd tried not to let a smile cross her lips. "He's a handsome, young man who's crazy about you." Miranda had smiled. "I like him better than Tucker," he'd said. Miranda squinted at him. "Yeah, Tucker wasn't, on his very best day, good enough you."

"You tell me this now?" Miranda had said sarcastically.

He'd chuckled. "Well, you were young and in love, you wouldn't have listened to me." She'd nodded. "But I'm telling you now, Ben is a catch." She was jolted back into the present. "Oh, the man of the hour!" He said looking at Ben.

Miranda turned around quickly, her hair flipping behind her. "Oh, tell me you're not here to take me to that house."

"No, I'm-I'm not," he said with a laugh, showing his amazing set of teeth. She had such a crush on him. "I'm not that cruel."

"Okay. Well, um, he, um, just asked me to do a chole with him and it's the only thing that's calmed me down all day on a day full of people trying and failing to calm me down," she whined holding onto his jacket. She missed the look that Ben gave Richard over her head. "My mother has been calling me nonstop. I'm going to throw my phone out of the window!"

Ben massaged her upper arms. "Why do you think he asked you?" He said looking at her shocked face. His lips parted and the right corner of his mouth eased into a wide smile. _Goddamn that smile_ , she thought.

"You called him?" She asked, still shocked. Is this how they handled her? Secret calls behind her back? She smiled inside. "Thank you," she said putting her head into his chest. The cologne he was wearing turned her on. She absolutely could not wait until the wedding was over. She wanted him. "Both of you." She waved at Richard.

"So can I have a car pick you up at the house?" Ben said quickly. Did he think she'd changed her mind? She wasn't that grateful.

"How many times do I have to say no to that?"

"A person shouldn't drive themselves to their own wedding," her fiancé argued.

"Well, I like to drive," she shot back.

"In a wedding gown?" Richard said jumping into the debate.

"Y-it's my last ten minutes as a single woman. You know, you both were on a roll there. Why are you trying to screw it up now?"

Richard stopped her tangent. "You know what?" He shook hands with Ben. "Brunch is still on, right?"

"Oh, yes, sir," Ben said letting go of the older man's hand.

Webber looked at Miranda. "I'll see you in the OR." She twisted her lips to the side.

"And I cannot wait to see you at the altar," Ben said putting his hands on his hips. He leaned in to kiss her. One of their last kisses as an engaged couple. His tongue made its way into her mouth, dancing with her own. With one more kiss on her lips, he pulled back, smirked at her and walked out of the room. Miranda stood there, elephants stomping around in her stomach, she was even more nervous now than she was before.

After they finished what had to be the 1,000,000th chole between the two of them, Miranda sat in front of a computer, typing and clicking mindlessly. _Did she even really need to marry Ben? Wouldn't she just as happy if they stayed eternally engaged? Was he the right one? Was she the right one?_ Their family was already broken; he lived in another state pursuing a second specialty because one just wasn't enough. But she honestly respected him for it. _Is this what I really want to do?_ Miranda asked herself these questions. She closed the chart that she was working on and accidentally dropped her pen. As she leaned down to get it, she knocked down the chart. _Fuck it all_ , she thought. "Oh, damn it," she said aloud.

"Glad you're driving yourself to the wedding," her mentor said appearing out of nowhere. She looked at him, dark blue scrubs, light blue surgical gown and his blue and purple-patterned custom-made scrub cap. She knew what she looked like: identical scrubs and gown and she wore her own custom-made cap, a light and dark blue patterns on it. She imagined that a lot of people, visitors and staff alike thought they were related. They had the same confidence and demeanor; they were in the same field and had the same standard of excellence. Richard was childless, but she liked to think that she, along with Meredith Grey, whose mother he had an affair with years ago, gave him the opportunity to do something he never got a chance to do, be a father to someone. "Remind me to stay off the roads." He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Were you like this?" Miranda asked sincerely. If there was one person who could help her, it was him.

He walked toward her. "On my wedding day, I remember staring at my socks for a long time. I had no idea what do with 'em."

"You know," she started taking a look around; no one seemed to be in earshot. "Ten years from now, if the marriage is strong, I'll look back at today and say: 'it was just a little bit of cold feet'. If we're in a nasty divorce, I'll say: 'I knew it was a mistake the day we got married'." She spoke honestly. This is what she was really worried about. She didn't want to mess up.

"You think it's a mistake?" Richard asked her. He looked into her eyes.

She matched his stare. "I-I…I just feel worried," she answered in a near whisper. "I never felt that way with Tucker."

"You were a child when you married Tucker. You're an adult now. You know the world's an ambiguous place. You know that love doesn't conquer all. It conquers some stuff. The other stuff kicks the living crap out of love."

Miranda rolled her neck a little. "And this is the pep talk?"

Richard chuckled a little. "Overwhelming doubt is a problem." She thought about it. After her conversation with Ben last night, she wasn't afraid, she was just a little apprehensive. "A little bit of doubt is just a sign of an intelligent adult."

Miranda put down the chart and hugged him. His arms enveloped her. "Thank you, Richard."

"Of course."

Miranda was pressed for time, she left the hospital, already late for the start of brunch. She needed to go to the nail salon, but they weren't able to fit her in at the moment. She made an appointment for later in the day. She drove home and there seemed to be twenty more cars than there were last night. She decided to just park on their lawn. There was no way that she was going to end up down the street somewhere. Ben could fix the grass later. When she walked into the house, it was packed. Her house had never seen that many people. She dreaded having to go around and say 'hi' to everyone, but she did it anyway. "Alright, grab hands, time for grace," Ben said coming up next to her. He kissed her cheek and took her hands. "Eddie?"

"Of course, cousin. Let's all bow our heads," Eddie said lifting his glasses to his forehead. "Dear Lord, we're gathered here today to celebrate Miranda and Ben, Lord God. Who, in a few short hours, will be married in Your name, God. The love they have for each other is so strong." A chorus of "Amens and yeses and thank yous" filled the room. She looked at Ben out of the corner of her eye, he opened one eye and winked at her, shutting it again. Eddie continued: "We're gathered in Your name to celebrate love and family and to eat this wonderful meal prepared carefully and with blessed hands. Father, we ask that it be nourishment to our bodies through Christ our Redeemer. Let us say: Amen."

"Okay, everyone, brunch is served," Ben said to the large crowd of, if Miranda had to guess, nearly forty people. A long line snaked from the table set up along the wall, all the way into the hallway. Music played through the house.

"Move quickly people, we don't have all day," Julia said.

"Aye, you," Elena said looking at Curt. "Save some for some other folks." The house laughed.

Miranda felt a pull on her arm. She looked down into the face of her son. She held him tightly. "Mommy, let go, you're squeezing too hard."

"You should be used to it by now," she said kissing his cheek. "How are you?"

"Good! Chris let me play his games and we stayed up late."

"Oh?'

"Yes." He looked around. "Are you nervous?"

"W-what?" Miranda asked. That was the thing about kids, they had no filter. They asked whatever, whenever.

"Are you nervous? Or scared?"

"No. I'm not scared. Why?"

"Because Grandpa Anthony said marriage is forever and that's a long time."

Miranda smiled and touched her son's cheek. "Nope, still not scared."

"Because you love Ben?"

"Yes," Miranda said as Ben came up next to them.

"I love him, too," Tuck said. He saw his cousins and jetted off. Miranda looked at her fiancé and smiled hysterically.

"I got something for you."

She raised her eyebrow. "I hope it's not one of those 'borrowed, old, new or blue' things. My mother and Devin have taken care of it all." He shook his head. "Then, what is it."

"Attention, everyone!" Ben said his voice booming. Miranda's heart was beating swiftly in her chest. She didn't know what he was about to announce and why he was doing it in front of everyone. Oh, dear God, he was about to leave her at the altar.

"What is going on?" She whispered out of the side of her mouth.

He ignored her. "So my beautiful wife-to-be has been a little perturbed with me over the last couple of days."

"Awww," everyone said.

She rolled her eyes at them all, waving them off. "You see she caught me having lunch with another woman. And I didn't tell her who the woman was."

"Boooo!" They echoed.

"Yes, booo!" Miranda joined in.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. 'Boooo' to me," Ben said smiling. He turned to Miranda and picked up her hand. "You already know that I love you and all that jazz."

"Get on with it!" William yelled from the back.

"Yeah, some of us have a wedding to go to," Anthony said making the rest of the guests laugh.

"Fine! I have a surprise for you, Miranda. I've been working on this for months. I can't wait to marry you." Miranda blushed. Did he have to say that in front of everyone? "But, uh, I didn't want to marry you without the one person you wanted behind you. Your sister."

She thought for a second. Who did she want at the wedding who wasn't going to be there? "Oh, Valerie!" Miranda said. "Is the service going to be good this time? Because last time it was a pain in the ass. And I haven't talked to that wench in like two weeks, so I have some words for her. Where's the tablet? Where is she?" She stared at Ben who was looking at her. She looked over at her son who was looking in her direction, but past her. Miranda turned around and screamed, loudly. "AHHHH!"

"Hey, Mandy girl," Valerie said putting her arms around Miranda.

"I'm mad at you, Valerie," Miranda said when she finished hugging her older sister, a few tears having left her eyes.

"Uh-oh, you called me Valerie. You must be livid," she said and everyone laughed again. Miranda looked at her sister. She was wearing a black jeans and a nice pink top, her brown skin glowed and she had a short haircut. She said it made it easier to do Army things. Miranda couldn't stop staring at her; they'd been apart for too long.

"I thought you were going to miss my wedding."

Valerie leaned in: "I didn't miss the first one, did I?"

Miranda chuckled. She looked around and saw that all eyes were still on them. "Um, everyone can go back to eating." She took Valerie's hand and took her upstairs. They sat on the bed facing each other. "I cannot believe you're here."

"I can. Look at you Mandy, you're adorable."

"Tell me something I don't know." They laughed. "And you came to town, missed my bachelorette party, had lunch with my husband and didn't even tell me. I thought he was fooling around."

"Yeah, well, I heard all about it," the older sister said. The younger sister smiled. "And look how easy husband rolled off your tongue," Valerie said. Miranda's cheeks reddened. It was a slipup. Valerie read Miranda's face. "It's okay. And I don't even know Ben that well, but I do know that he wouldn't cheat on you, Mandy." Miranda nodded. "Especially if he doesn't want me to fight him."

"You didn't do anything to Tucker," Miranda said raising an eyebrow.

"Or so you think," Valerie said with a straight face.

Miranda looked at her sister. She couldn't tell if she was joking or not. "So, um… how'd he get you out here?" She smiled.

It was Valerie's turn to nod. "So, I got an email from Ben a few months ago. It was short. And in it he said that he wanted to make sure that I'd be back for the wedding. Which, of course, I was. I wasn't going to miss your wedding, Mandy. And he asked me to tell you that I wasn't coming and he flew me in a few days early so that I could surprise you. And he told me that you talked shit about me."

Miranda laughed. "That was when I thought you were a wench."

"Jerk."

"Your daddy."

Both women laughed hysterically. There was a knock on the door and Callie strolled in followed by Ben. "Hey, Cal," Valerie said.

"Hey, Val," Callie responded. "Bailey, I know you made me your MOH."

"Mo?" Ben said.

"Not, 'mo, MOH, Maid of Honor," Valerie answered.

"Right, but, if you want Valerie to take over, I'm cool with that."

"No, no, I asked you. She can sit with everyone else," Miranda said with a smile. Valerie pushed her. "Don't make me get momma up here."

"Do it," Valerie said. "But Callie, thanks for offering, but you've earned that spot."

"Thanks, ladies. I'm going to take off because I have to get ready. And I will be back to help you with anything you need."

"Ready for what?" Miranda asked. She felt three pairs of eyes piercing her. "Just… kidding. I need to start getting ready, too."

Ben looked at her. "Can you give us a minute?" Miranda asked Callie and Valerie. They nodded and left. Miranda patted the spot that Valerie left empty. He slid next to her.

"Can you believe we're going to do this?" He asked putting his face in the space between her face and shoulder.

"Not hardly," she said with touching the back of his head. She kissed his ear.

"I'm going to miss being engaged to you."

"You are?" She asked, confused. She guessed that she would miss being engaged to him as well. It was like they were in limbo; they weren't yet married, but they weren't single either. She grinned to herself. "Why?"

He looked up at her and smiled. "Well, when we get married, I won't really have the option of ignoring you."

"Do you have that option now?" She asked looking at him with a sassily-raised eyebrow.

He squinted at her and let go of a laugh. "A little bit." She stared at him. "A very little bit." She didn't break her gaze. "No, not really." He laughed again. "Keep staring at me like that I'm going to break tradition." She gasped and pushed at his chest. He kissed her. "Any questions before we get hitched?"

Miranda thought for a second. There was so much about him that she didn't know and vice versa, but what she really wanted to know—"So when you dropped me off after we saw Roberta, you went to get Val and ya'll had lunch." Ben nodded. "Then, what did you do after you left me at the hospital when you first got in?"

He stared at her, not blinking. "It's a secret, Miranda. Let me just have that."

"So when you asked if I had any questions, you really just meant questions you would answer."

"Basically, but l promise you'll know, okay?"

"Okay." She rolled her eyes and looked away from him.

He touched her chin steering her gaze back in his direction. "You know, Miranda, the next time I kiss you will be the last time before the first time I kiss you as your husband."

Chills covered her body. "And the first time I kiss you as your wife."

He groaned softly. "I love the way that sounds."

There was no one on the face of the planet who could make her blush like he could. Even saying the simplest things. "So are you going to kiss me?"

"What kind of kiss do you want?"

Miranda stood up suddenly, Ben fell on the bed. "I actually want to practice the kiss for the ceremony."

Ben was intrigued and scrambled off of the bed and into her arms. "You're sure? Because the next time will be the last time… until the next time."

She nodded. "Got that." She was sure.

"Tongue?"

"I don't know. Maybe a little?" She said, uncertain.

"Length?"

"Four seconds?" Miranda offered. They counted out four seconds. "Feels decent."

"Yeah, any shorter than that is like: do they even like each other? And too long is: Ew, get a room." They laughed.

"So the pastor will say the thing, we'll jump over the broom and then we'll turn to each other…"

Miranda made a mental to-do list in her head. Both her hair and makeup were done. Callie was already gone and was on her way to pick up Arizona. Valerie was behind her zipping up her dress. Her mother was taking candid pictures, the light flashing in her eyes. "Momma! Please!" Elena held up her hands and put her camera down. "I just need one minute, please," Miranda begged. Her mother and sister left the room, closing her bedroom door behind them. A knock on the door startled her and made her angry. "Who is it?" She growled.

"It's your father," William said.

"Sorry, daddy. Come in," Miranda said apologetically. She stood looking into the mirror, amazed by what she saw. She looked—

"You look beautiful, baby," William said stuffing his hands in his pocket. Miranda smiled at him through the reflecting glass. He smiled back at her. Identical smiles. Tuck would grow as tall his father, but he had his mother's smile. "I just came in to say that. And to say that I really like him, Miranda. I think he's really good for you and for Tuck."

"He is," she said running her hands down her body.

"I love you, Miranda."

"I love you, too, daddy." She turned around and faced her father. She threw her arms around him. A daddy's girl to the end.

He kissed her cheeks. "I can't get over it, my little girl, getting married."

"Yeah, for the second time," she mumbled.

"Don't worry on that. Not for a minute. No one cares that it's your second other than you. Trust me."

"You think so?"

"If I hear anyone saying otherwise, I will fuck them up," he said seriously. He smiled slowly, making Miranda smile. "Alright, I'm going to leave you to it." He kissed her again and was gone.

Her mother and sister burst back into the room. _Damn it,_ she thought. Miranda picked up her car keys off of her dresser. "I am about to go to the loft, I'll see you two over there."

Valerie shook her head. "Mandy, are you sure? Daddy can just drive you over." Miranda walked past them and stood at the top of the stairs.

"I'm fine," she said calmly. They held her dress as she walked down the stairs, stepping gingerly. Her sister messed with her veil and her mother fussed the entire time. She made her way outside.

"Let your father take you, Miranda. With your nerves, I think—"

"Momma! I am fine," Miranda repeated. "I just need five minutes with none of you touching me." Miranda knew she sounded rude, but she was hot and bothered and—"I'm sorry. Momma, I'll be okay." She unlocked the car door and was about to get in when she saw a limo pulling up. "What the…"

"Who is that?" Elena asked. Miranda didn't answer; she had no clue.

"I thought you told Ben no car," Valerie said.

"I did," she told her sister absentmindedly. The limo stopped in front of her house. The three of them watched as the door opened and out stepped her mentor, her Seattle dad, Richard. She exhaled when she saw him get out. He looked so cute in his tux. And just for her. He fixed his jacket and leaned against the car, crossing his arms. His signature power move. He smiled at her, looking to the car. They both knew how this was going to end. She smiled, not able to control the emotion. "I said I didn't want a car."

"I heard you," he said.

"Richard, you look so handsome," Elena said. Miranda turned to look at her mother.

"Thank you, Elena."

"Get in the car, baby," Elena told her daughter. With no more energy to debate, Miranda handed over her car keys and walked over to the limo, her mother holding her train and her sister holding her bouquet. She gave both of them a hug and a kiss and slid inside.

In the limo, Richard must have sensed her nervousness because he looked over at her and picked up her hand. She sighed deeply. "Everything will be fine. You look gorgeous."

"Thank you."

"Butterflies?"

"Elephants." They laughed and a lot of her tension was released. "Where's Adele?"

"She's already there. I dropped her off earlier."

"I hope she's not mad that you left her alone."

"No, she knows how much you mean to me." Miranda's heart skipped a beat. Their close relationship was something that she relied on. Although she wasn't surprised, (he'd been at her first wedding and he'd also come to visit her as she was giving birth to Tuck), she was glad that he was there. When they arrived at the building, Miranda was stunned. The outside was beautifully and simply decorated. Callie and Devin were both waiting outside.

"Where are Grey and Robbins?" Miranda asked.

Callie bit her bottom lip. "Mer is inside, but Arizona got called in. She said she's so sorry and she'll make it up to you."

"Fine, fine. I can't complain about a sickly child now can I?" Richard shook his head and jerked his head towards the loft. She hugged him once and walked up the stairs with Callie holding her train. They went into loft and got on the elevator, riding up to one of the rooms that she'd visited with Ben and Roberta. "Is…"

"Yeah, he's here," Callie said smiling.

Miranda bit the inside of her cheek as they walked into the room. "Y—"

"Yes, we're sure," Devin said answering her before she could ask.

"Devin, I want you to be up there… to be one of my bridesmaids," Miranda spat out quickly. There was no time for hemming and hawing.

"Of… sure, Mandy. Whatever you want," Devin said grinning.

Miranda exhaled. "And Ben is here, right?" She asked her bridesmaids.

"Of course he's here, Miranda. He is The One," Callie told her, squeezing her hands.

The three ladies sat in the room, talking and laughing. Callie handed Miranda a fan to keep her makeup from sweating off. They were joined in the room by her mother and Valerie. Brooke and Saniyah also stopped by to check her hair and touchup her face. "Okay, Miranda, it's nearly time," Roberta said coming into the room. "But first someone wants to say, 'hi'." Roberta stepped to the side and her favorite guy came waltzing in the room. Tuck. He was the ring bearer and looked so perfect in his little suit. She smiled and gestured for him to come to her. He hugged her tightly.

"I love you so much," she said with her lips pressed against the top of his head.

"I love you, too, mommy," Tuck said. He kissed her cheek and room sighed with "Awwws". He ran out of the room.

Everyone left the room as Roberta and her assistant waved them to their places. She was so thankful for that. She'd never gotten that moment to herself, the one she needed. Miranda took a deep breath and picked up a piece of gum that was lying on the table. She unwrapped it and tossed it into her mouth. In the mirror, she smiled. Her hair and makeup was flawless and the dress was basically perfect. She took another deep breath and paused, staring, her eyes, unblinking. If she wanted to back out, now was the time to do it. And she knew of a few people who would drive the getaway car for her. If she needed a pep talk, her dad and her mentor were both great at them. Her mother could coax her with a smile and hug. Her sister would kick her ass down the aisle. Miranda smiled; she didn't need any of that. She knew what she was getting into. She knew who she was marrying. And he was amazing and he was waiting for her. A knock on the door, made her blink. "We're ready," her father said. She turned to him. "Still stunning."

"I just hope that poor, poor man is still standing there," she joked.

"Of course he is. He's getting the most beautiful bride."

"Ain't that the truth," she said as she linked her arm with his and they walked out of the room.

As the doors opened up, Miranda's heart sped up. There were so many people. Had they really invited that many people? And all of those eyes were on her, waiting and smiling.

"And…go!" Roberta hissed. Even with her heels on, making her a few inches taller than usual—through the crowd, she couldn't see anything. She couldn't see Ben. She couldn't see his face. "Close the doors!" Roberta said in a whisper. Miranda could see the panic starting to show on Roberta's face. Everything up until now had been going smoothly. "Miranda, what's the—"

"Mandy," her father said getting her attention. She turned and looked up into his eyes. He smiled, widely. "The, uh, ceremony will be over in an hour or so." She nodded. "That's about the length of an appendectomy or when you take out someone's gallbladder, right?"

"A chole?" She said. Her dad was talking surgery. He nodded. "Yeah, barring complications."

"Right! So, pretend you're about to go and do one of those and let's get you married."

She smiled widely. "I'm ready." She turned to Roberta. "Stop freaking out. I'm ready."

Roberta nodded. "No one was freaking out. And… go!"

Miranda still couldn't see Ben, but this time it didn't scare her, it was exciting. It was like she was searching for a trouble-causing tumor in a body. She and her father walked up the aisle; the smiles from the attendees were warm and welcoming. Before she knew it, they were at the altar which was located on a wide platform; her father was kissing her cheek and shaking hands with Ben. Her future husband was staring at her, his face straight. "What?" She asked him out of the corner of her mouth. He looked so sexy in his black tux. It was almost a shame that most of the focus was on her and not him. Almost.

"Nothing," he said with a smile. His smile made her smile, too.

"Say 'hi' then," she told him, stealing his line.

"Hi," he said. Her smile widened. He was still there. Still the same guy.

From Miranda's point of view, much of the ceremony was a blur; it flew right past her face and over her head. The most important thing was that she was standing in front of the perfect guy and had her friends behind her and her family supporting her. A lot of people didn't have that. She was grateful. "In addition to the traditional vows," the preacher was saying. "The bride and groom have also chosen to recite vows with they themselves have written." She could hear everyone smiling. "Ben, you're up first."

Ben squeezed her hands. "Miranda, I got this phone call when I was twenty. It was a guy. And he said: 'You can't mess this up. He said that at first, she's going to seem cold and a little mean, but she's not. At all. She will make you fall in love with her. She's feisty, so she'll will break up with you, but, uh, keep calm because she will practically demand that you guys get back together'." Miranda smiled at Ben. He was such a character. "He went on to say that: 'She will complete you and challenge you and make you angry one day and the happiest you've ever been on another. She's always right, so don't forget that'." Everyone laughed. "The guy said: 'Ben, she's perfect for you. So kiss her every day and thank her for giving you a chance. Don't let her get away'. I know now that he was talking about you, Miranda. You are my soul mate and someone I'm glad to be on this journey with. And I adore you. So I promise to love you and respect you and to be kind to you. Forever."

"Miranda," the preacher said.

She inhaled and looked at Ben, his eyes waiting. "Ben Warren… I don't need you." She heard a few gasps in the crowd. In her peripheral, she saw the pastor jerk back his head a little. Ben refocused his eyes. "I am a woman of the 21st century. I can take care of myself and take care of my child. I'm independent, I don't like asking for help or receiving it. So, I don't _need_ you. But I want you. And that—that's a whole lot for me to take in, but it's a lot easier than having to imagine my life without you. You love me and understand me and make me fearless. You, Ben Warren, have made it easy for me to love you and having you means that my prayers have truly been answered." She swallowed the lump that was in her throat. "I vow to listen and to be careful and understand you. You are my soul mate, the love of my life and I love you." A small tear pricked her eye. She looked at Ben and thought she could see a tear in his eye as well. "That's all. There."

Ben mouthed, "I love you, too."

Ben reached over and picked up the rings off of the small pillow that Tuck was holding. He handed her the ring she'd gotten for him. "And now, the bride and groom will exchange rings," the pastor said addressing the crowd. "Do you, Miranda Bailey, take Ben Warren to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?"

"Yes, I do," she said speaking confidently and clearly.

"Great. And, do you, Ben Warren, take Miranda Bailey to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward—"

"I do!" Ben said suddenly.

"Son, I'm not finished."

"I know. And, I'm-I'm sorry, but look at her." The crowd swooned. "I've been practicing my answer for a while now."

"Cool, but, uh, how about you let me finish?" The pastor whispered.

"Let the man finish, Ben," Miranda said smiling.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he apologized profusely.

When they'd finished and she had her ring on her finger, the pastor turned to Ben and gave a short nod. Miranda looked from one man to the other. Ben let go of her hands: "What's going on?" She asked underneath her breath.

He ignored her. Ben took a step back and looked at Tuck, smiling before he knelt down next to Tuck. "Tuck?"

"Yes?" The boy asked looking at his mother, whose mouth was wide open.

"I'm sorry, this is a big boy moment, so I'll use your big boy name—William George Bailey Jones." Tuck nodded wildly. "I have something for you. But before I give it to you. I want to tell you a few things, i-is that okay?"

"Okay."

"Okay," Ben said smiling. He looked at Miranda and winked which made her smile. He cleared his throat and began. "Tuck, I want you to know that I truly adore your mother. She makes me so happy. And I want to thank you for sharing her with me." The six-year old grinned. "I may not have been there at your birth, but I love you just the same. And though you may not remember this part, five or ten years down the road, I promise to always be there to remind you, always respecting you and always keeping you in my heart." Miranda glanced at her wedding guests and saw that there wasn't a dry eye in the place. Taking a quick look at the preacher, she saw that even he was wiping away a tear. Ben continued: "I will do my best to make sure that your homework is always finished, your chores are done and that you don't give your mom too many headaches." Everyone, including Miranda, laughed. She felt someone tap her and hand her a tissue. It was Callie. "And I vow to show you how a man should treat a woman in my relationship with your mother. And above all else, I promise to be your friend, love you, care for you and protect you. Does that sound good?"

"Yes," Tuck said simply. The boy threw his arms around Ben, nearly knocking him over.

"I love you, bud."

"I love you, too." There was a collective, sighing "Aww" from everyone. Ben kissed the top of Tuck's head and reached into his pocket and pulled out a chain that he slid over the boy's head. "Cool! Is this mine?" Ben nodded and stood up. "Thank you." Tuck hugged him again and more tears fell from Miranda's eyes. She figured that her makeup probably looked a mess, but she didn't care. Ben's gesture was one of the best things she'd ever witnessed. Talk about secret wedding plans. She'd had no idea that he was going to do it. And it wasn't even about the showmanship, it was that he really meant every word. She and Tuck were in good hands.

Ben moved back in front of her and picked up her hands. "Oh, so, can we continue now?" She asked biting the inside of her bottom lip.

Ben nodded with his own eyes full of tears. "Pastor."

"Thank you for that moving speech," the pastor said clearing his throat. "Then by the power vested in me by the state of Washington…" Miranda smiled widely. She looked over at the pastor and then at Ben who had a proud, happy look on his face. "I now pronounce you husband and wife." She gave a short laugh. Everything was moving so quickly, yet going too slowly.

Ben's brother, Curt, reached next to the platform and picked up their beautifully decorated ceremonial wedding broom. This was a non-negotiable. Jumping over the broom was something that they had to do. Both of their parents and their grandparents had done it and they wouldn't be the first to break the tradition. It was important to both of them. She hadn't done it with Tucker; he'd thought it was old-fashioned and pointless. But this time around, she wasn't budging on the idea and Ben supported her. To Miranda, jumping of the broom symbolized fertility and prosperity for them. For Ben, it meant that they were leaping into a new life as a couple with loyalty and respect. Ben moved down a step and touched Miranda's arm to help her down as well. She looked over at Tuck and winked. He beamed at her, one hand on his chain, the other holding the pillow. "Ready?" Ben asked holding out his hand, his palm waiting for hers.

She slid her fingers between his. "Ready," she confirmed. They stared at each other for a second. She inhaled softly. There was no going back now. She licked her lips and they jumped. A small scream escaped her lips as they hopped over the broom. She laughed as they landed on the other side. Married. All of her guests stood up and clapped. She looked at the dozens of familiar and non-familiar faces, not registering any of them. The only thing she really knew was that she was holding the hand of a man who absolutely loved her. She turned to him and smiled—just for him. She moved closer to him, closing her eyes. He leaned in a little, connecting their lips. The kiss was short and sweet and one that she'd remember forever. Miranda put her hands on his chest and smiled. He kissed her forehead, putting his hand around her waist as they turned to face the still applauding crowd. It was finally over. Finally. It was both over and about to begin.

After they'd taken all of the pictures that they could ever want for their keepsakes, Miranda and Ben joined the rest of their family and friends in the reception hall. Most people had already started eating. Miranda sat at the head of the table with Ben by her side. They were served their food by waiters who catered to their every need. Every five minutes while they ate, someone would start hit their fork to their glass making a "clinking" sound; the signal for Miranda and Ben to share a kiss. As Miranda sipped some of her champagne, the noise started again, with off-beat hits. It was close, someone in the wedding party. She looked on Ben's side of the table and saw Tuck staring at her, his fork in his hand. She shook her head and blew him a kiss. She touched the side of Ben's face and pulled him in for a deep kiss. "Woooooooo!" Her guests shouted. After they ate, Ben and Miranda made their rounds, going to each table. It was positively exhausting. They must have said the same thing one hundred times. And everyone wanted to know why the doors had opened and closed before Miranda came down the aisle. She was tired of coming up with faux excuses: Her dress had started to unzip, her veil was stuck to her dress, her father had to tie his shoes. She was so glad when she heard the MC for the night, David, say: "Alright, everyone! Where's our bride and groom?"

"Whew!" She said relieved.

"Thank God!" Ben said as he ushered her onto the dance floor. She giggled.

"Everybody's been waiting a while for this dance," David said. He was a tall, Black guy with a shaved head and a full beard. "Ladies and gentlemen, let's give it up for the newlyweds." The entire room clapped as Ben spun Miranda around once, showing her off. The music started. From the first few chords, she knew exactly what song it was. She melted into Ben; into her husband. _Husband._ Thinking about the word elicited a skip in her heartbeat.

 _I see us in the park, strolling the summer days of imaginings in my head_

"And words from our hearts," Miranda sang softly. "Told only to the wind felt even without being said."

 _I don't want to bore you with my trouble, but there's something 'bout your love that makes me weak and knocks me off my feet_

"I take it you know this song," Ben said, his voice vibrating their bodies.

"Yeah," she answered as they moved gracefully to the music. This was one of her favorite songs. "It's a classic."

"I agree. I don't want to bore you with it. Oh, but I love you, I love you, I love you." Ben's voice was quiet. She inhaled sharply and looked up at him. Her eyes targeted his. "You are so gorgeous."

 _I love you, I love you, I love you…More and more_

"Not bad yourself, Mr. Warren," she said. She couldn't stop staring at him. And for once, she wasn't worried that he would run screaming away from their relationship, she had no doubts; she was sure.

 _We lay beneath the stars, under a lover's tree that's seen through the eyes of my mind_

And it had taken her a long time to feel that way. Looking at him, she realized that she was so happy and she never wanted the feeling to end. The feeling of being so satisfied and feeling so beautiful. Because he looked at her like it was the only thing he ever wanted to do. "I love you so much, Miranda," Ben said earnestly. The sincerity of his statement hit her. "Do you love me?" His voice was so sexy. She loved it so much.

 _I reach out for the part, of me that lives in you that only our two hearts can find_

Miranda appreciated his hand on her waist; actually enjoyed her hand on his shoulder, their hands connected. She pulled him closer to her, putting their hands over her heart, his forehead landed on hers softly. "More than I can hold in my heart."

 _I don't want to bore you with my trouble, but there's something 'bout your love that makes me weak and knocks me off my feet_

The conversation they were sharing was just between them, no one else could hear them over the music. There was so much pleasure in having a completely intimate moment in a public place. It turned her on. She wanted him—badly. She most definitely couldn't wait to make love to him. She touched the back of his head. They kissed softly and joined their foreheads again, staring at each other. "Then that's all I need to know," he said sending a shiver up her spine.

When their dance was over, everyone applauded and Ben moved slowly off of the dance floor, kissing her once before he went back to the head table. "And now, the father-daughter dance. This song was requested by the father of the bride."

Her father offered her his hand. "Oh my goodness," Miranda squealed when she heard the beginning of the song. It was "Build Me Up Buttercup" by the Foundations. Her father introduced her to the song when she was very young. And she loved it. She wore out records, then cassettes and then the CD she'd bought because it had this song on it.

She used to play this song nonstop while she did her chores around the house and she still did to this very day, even Tuck knew all of the words. William smiled at his daughter as they began to dance. "You remembered."

"Of course, how could I forget? You must have made us listen to it a thousand times," he said laughing. They continued to dance. "Miranda, you look so beautiful."

"Thanks, daddy."

 _Why do you build me up buttercup, baby_

"I'm so proud of you, baby."

"Proud?"

He nodded. "Yes. I know how much…," William searched for the right word. "Strength it must have taken for you to find love and to fall again." Miranda was astonished. There had been a time when her father had chastised her for divorcing Tucker. He'd said that she was destroying her family. "So, yes, I'm proud of you." She kept her eyes wide, a tear was forming in her eyes and she didn't want it to fall. "Ben is really great."

"I know," she said taking a glance at her husband. He was watching her and they locked eyes. "No one will ever be good enough for you, but he comes pretty damn close."

' _I'll be over at ten,' you told me time and again_

"You're going to make cry, daddy."

"Again," William said as they laughed together. "And he promised to take care of my grandson which makes him honorable as shit."

"Daddy!" Miranda said chuckling.

"Well, it does," he answered unapologetically.

She nodded. "Tuck will be very lucky to have two dads."

He looked down at her and smiled. "I want you to come and visit us more."

"I will," she promised.

"I love you, baby."

"I love you, too, daddy." William kissed her cheek and pulled away. "Wha-" William waved over Richard who walked onto the dance floor awkwardly.

 _And then worst of all you never call, baby_

"Uh, William. Miranda," Richard said looking around.

"Dance with our daughter," William said walking away. Miranda started to tear up. William patted Richard's back and walked away.

"May I?" Richard asked. She nodded. "That was a great ceremony. Definitely one of the best ceremonies I've ever been to."

"It was very nice, wasn't it?"

"Yes. You really do look gorgeous, Bailey." She said thank you. "Did you know about Ben's plan?"

 _I'll be home I'll be beside the phone waiting for you_

She shook her head. "I had no idea."

"I told you he was a good one."

"Yeah, he is," Miranda said as they moved to the 60s song.

"Do you mind that I'm out here and not your dad?"

She looked up at her mentor. "I think my dad knows that you mean a lot to me. I don't think he minds sharing." When it was over, Richard gave her a big hug.

Once the floor opened up to all of the guests, Miranda went back to her private room to change out of her wedding dress. She had picked out a few options to choose from. Eventually she decided on something a little lighter and shorter than her wedding gown. It was a simple, strapless, little white truffle dress. It was classy and sexy at the same time. She debated whether or not to put shoes on, but decided to just keep them off. The rest of the night would be nothing but dancing and candid photos. Barefoot and smiling, she ran out of the room. In the reception hall, the floor was being cleared. She went back to the head table and sat next to Callie. "What's going on?" She asked, waving at Arizona who'd showed up. "And you missed my wedding."

"Bouquet and garter toss," Arizona answered. "And sorry, but sick kids and babies." The blonde smiled.

Miranda made a face as David starting talking again: "Okay, ladies! All ladies who are not married please come to the dance floor." Miranda sat and watched as her unmarried friends made their way to the floor. "Bride, you too."

"Oh, right," she said aloud. Miranda grabbed her bouquet and made her way to the middle of the floor. She walked past Ben and touched his head gently.

"You look beautiful, baby!" He called out. His groomsmen howled.

"Now, Miranda," David asked. "Do you see any ladies who should be on the dance floor and aren't?" Miranda looked around and saw April sitting at a table with one of her good friends, Jackson Avery from Plastics and two of the interns, Stephanie Edwards and Shane Ross. They looked like they were on some weird double date. Miranda remembered a conversation that she had with the redhead a few years back about finding a "Ben": _a nice boy. A kind boy. A boy who loves you._ At some point, she and Jackson had hooked up. Miranda was usually right about these things and thought that they'd last, but looking at that odd group of doctors, she figured she'd been wrong. Eh, it happened, although not often. Miranda waved over Stephanie and April. They got up reluctantly. "Good, good. Alright, ladies. The ritual states that whichever single woman catches the bride's bouquet shall be the next one to get married."

Miranda made a face. "Which may or may not be true."

"Right," David said smiling. "So I'm just going to put on this very popular song and Miranda, make sure they work for it. And good luck, ladies!" He started mixing "Party" by Beyoncé featuring J. Cole.

Miranda danced around and directed the crowd of women with her bouquet. When the chorus started, she turned around and threw the collection of fresh flowers over her head. She turned around and watched as April jumped up and snatched the flowers out of the air. "Ha!" She said to no one in particular. The rest of the guests applauded. April came over to Miranda and they took a picture.

Knox, Ben's best friend at the hospital, pulled a chair to the center of the floor. New Edition's "Candy Girl" started blaring from the speakers.

Ben walked over to Miranda and kissed her passionately, his tongue moving into her mouth, playing tag with hers. She heard their guests clapping. Ben gently pushed her down onto the chair. "Practicing?" She asked looking at him with a smirk.

He squinted at her. "You are so lucky all of these people are here or I would—"

"Okay, Ben, let's find that garter and get it off!" David said.

Miranda watched as Ben knelt in front of her. He put his hands on her thighs. "This is a very short dress." She blushed as he looked up at her making her heart jump. "You know," he started. "By _tradition,_ I should remove the garter with my hands… or teeth."

She gasped. "You'd better not. Your parents—my parents are all watching." Ben made a face. "Our son is watching," she said running her tongue along her top lip.

He poked out his lips and spoke quickly. "I have to. Knox bet me two hundred dollars that not only would I not do it, but that you wouldn't even go for it."

"So you're using me to win a bet?" She asked. He nodded and they laughed loudly. "Two hundred?"

"Two hundred." She'd nodded slightly with a wicked smile. Ben moved between her legs. She closed her eyes as he kissed her thigh softly and his teeth bit her while trying to hold onto the garter. He slid it down her leg and over her bare feet. She let go of a smile as the room erupted in a loud applause with a few "damns" in the mix. He kissed her cheek with the garter still in his mouth. She and Ben turned to Knox and held up two fingers. He lifted his glass to them.

"Alright, single and unmarried fellas, time to hit the floor for the traditional tossing of the garter belt."

"David, tell them about this ritual, too," Miranda insisted as the women in the room laughed.

"I got you. The ritual states that the man who catches the garter of the bride will be the next to get married." The men in the room groaned. Miranda made her way back to her seat at the head table.

"You were supposed to throw it to me," Saniyah said hitting her on the butt.

Ben got ready to toss the garter belt to the crowd of men. As the garter went into the air, all of them ran off of the floor. All except one—Jackson Avery. He watched as his fellow single men left as the garter landed in his hand. "Holy crap," he said loud enough for all to hear. His bright red face turned to the table where Stephanie and April were sitting.

"And at the request of the bride and the groom, the young lady who caught the bouquet shall dance with the young man who caught the garter. Miranda could see sweat start to form on his face. April got up and met him in the middle of the floor. She watched them move together, awkwardly at first. But they eventually started talking and smiling. Maybe she wasn't wrong after all.

Miranda and Ben cut their very simple and elegant wedding cake. Ben pretended that he was going to smash the cake in her face. Instead he just put his arms on her shoulder and kissed her. When the dance floor got crowded again, Miranda was pulled out into the hallway by Ben. He guided her into an empty room next to their reception hall. He pushed her up against the wall gently. He touched her hair gently and then her neck, kissing her deeply. She stroked his head and wrapped a leg around his body. His lips made their way across her collarbone. Thank God I put on this strapless dress, she thought. Ben's tongue followed the trail of his kisses while one of his hands crawled up between her legs, his fingers feeling the lining of her panties. A high-pitched gasp left her lips. She moved away from him, near tears. "What's wrong?"

"No, no no," she said moving toward him. "Nothing. I want this." She gestured between the two of them. "I want this so, so, so, so, so badly."

"Then…"

"Not here," she said looking around.

"Not here?" He asked, exasperatedly.

"Someplace else." Miranda walked to the door.

"Someplace else?" He repeated.

"Did I marry a parrot?" She asked.

"I can't wait," he said shaking his head. "I need you. Now." Miranda gritted her teeth. She had to actively stop her mind from thinking about tearing Ben's clothes off of him. He'd done a lot of the work already. His shoes and his jacket were off. His shirt was unbuttoned, revealing his undershirt. He was so cute. She smiled at him. "Why are you smiling?"

"I just married my best friend," she said blushing.

"Oh yeah, I don't think that it's hit me yet," he said taking two chairs down from a huge pile in the corner. They sat down. "Like, we are actually married."

"Yeah. Really married."

"Do you feel any differently?"

"I feel like I'm glad the whole wedding thing is over. I feel good. And I'm ready to go on our honeymoon."

Ben clapped his hands. "Yes! Honeymoon!"

He moved closer to her and put his hand on her waist. "I am so ready."

"Is it just about the sex?" She asked, kind of seriously and kind of jokingly.

He sighed. "Of course not, Miranda." She started to speak and he cut her off. "But I'm not going to pretend like I don't want you. Like we haven't made love in weeks. Or act like I don't just want to lay with you, my wife, in a bed, comfortable—and naked."

She turned and faced him. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay."

"Like…" He dragged an answer out her.

"Like I understand what you are you saying," she said softly. "And I promise to make it up to you if you promise to make it up to me."

He nodded. "Deal," he said kissing her neck.

"Deal," she confirmed. "Oh, by the way, I'm mad at you."

"At me? Why?" He asked with a look of confusion.

"What you said to Tuck. And the necklace!"

He smiled casually. "What about it?" She stared at him. "I told you how I felt about him."

"I didn't know you were going to stop our wedding ceremony and do something special just for him."

"It was a surprise."

"He's so happy," she said beaming at her husband. "He loved every second and he loves his gift. Every time I look at him, he's touching it." Ben blushed and kissed her. She pulled away. "Mmmm, oh, Is that why you left me waiting at home when you first got back to Seattle?" He nodded. "Any other surprises?"

"I'll let you know." He kissed her once and then stood up and took her hand. They went back to the hall. Miranda wasn't surprised to see that while a few people had left, the dance floor was still full and everyone was having a good time.

Ben walked over to David and a few seconds later, David was saying: "And now, we're going to speed up this party up a little. Everyone on the dance floor!" He pointed across the room at Jessica Bokhee who was throwing back a shot. "That means you!"

Miranda laughed and felt a light tap on her lower back. She turned around and saw Tuck standing there. "Hi, baby." She smiled at him.

"Hi, mommy!" He said with a toothy smile.

"Having fun?" She asked. Just like Ben, he had his jacket and shoes off.

Tuck nodded. "And Grandma said I'm supposed to tell you 'Congratulations,' so Congratulations!"

"Thank you, baby," she said hugging him tightly. She released him. "Where's Dom and Eustace and everyone else?" Miranda asked referring to her younger cousins, the children of her first cousins.

"They're over there, but I wanted to dance with you."

"Of course," Miranda told her son as he took her hand and started to move back and forth to the music. He tried to spin her around and she ended up spinning him. He giggled. There was a sound she wouldn't get tired of hearing. When they finished dancing, he kissed her cheek and ran off after his cousins. Miranda stood alone on the dance floor and looked around. Her parents were having a cute, little moment. So were Richard and Adele. Ben and his siblings were circling Julia and Anthony as they danced together. Miranda said a silent prayer as she walked toward the bar to order a drink. She prayed that she and Ben would live as happily and beautifully as their parents. She leaned on the bar and swayed to the music. She couldn't believe it was over, really over. No more wedding planning. Dresses or dance lessons and decisions about cake or guests. They were done. She was glad. It was great fun (mostly), but it was exhausting. Another tap on her shoulder made Miranda turn around. She was pleasantly shocked to see Tucker standing there. "Tucker Jones."

"Mandy. You look gorgeous, girl," he said without a hint of awkwardness, like they were still great friends, still close. She nodded a little, eyeing him. He was very handsome man, tall and muscular. "Congratulations." He held out his arms. She looked in Ben's direction before walking into Tucker's arms. Even on her wedding day, she expected to feel the way she used to feel when he hugged her, a longing for it to continue. "It" being _Miranda and Tucker_. She didn't feel any of that—nothing. He released her. "Sorry I missed the ceremony. I'd really planned to be there."

"That's…perfectly fine," she answered, shifting the weight from one foot to the other.

"No, I'm serious," Tucker said with a laugh. "I'd bought the gift and everything." He gestured to the table full of their gifts.

"Well, thank you. I figured when I didn't see you that you didn't want to come because… you know."

"I wasn't going to come at first, but then I thought about Tuck and I didn't want him to think that I felt _bad_ about you in any way."

"That's why I invited you," she admitted. The two of them laughed. The bartender slid Miranda her drink. "Let me buy a drink, Tucker."

"Isn't this an open bar?" He asked chuckling.

She laughed, too. "It is," she answered with a nod.

"Then you can buy me a drink. Maybe make up for all of the ones I bought you." They laughed again. She'd forgotten how easy it was to be with him. They watched the crowd a little. "I feel terrible, but I can only stay for a little bit. Jaida is a bit under the weather," he said talking about his wife. Miranda had only met her a few times, she seemed really nice.

Miranda took a sip of her drink. "Oh, tell her that I said get rest and fluids, doctor's orders."

He nodded with a smile. He had a great smile. It was one of the things that first attracted her. "I, uh—I heard about what Ben said to Tuck. Tuck told me. He told me what happened." She waited for him to speak. "And even though no one asked my opinion, I don't mind. I mean, I'm indebted. Ben is good people. Tuck obviously loves him."

Miranda smiled at the compliments being thrown at her husband. "He really is." She lifted her hand and waved Ben over. He jogged over to Miranda and Tucker and put an arm around her waist.

"Hey, Tucker," Ben said holding out his hand.

"Ben," Tucker said shaking Ben's hand. "Congratulations, my brother."

"Thank you. Thank you, sir." Miranda didn't know how Ben did that, managed to make any awkward situation less awkward. He had a gift. Ben and Tucker always acted like they were old friends, they got along or they were did a great job of pretending. Probably for her and Tuck's sake. "I know you must have heard about the ceremony. I hope that it's okay.

Tucker put out his hand. "It's all good. I'm grateful that you're in his life. And Miranda's." Ben and Miranda nodded. "Take care of them."

"I'm standing right here," Miranda said looking at both of them. They smiled.

"I'm sorry, baby," Ben said kissing her cheek. She shook her head.

"I shouldn't have to ask, but you're picking Tuck up this weekend, right?" Miranda said.

"For what?" Tucker asked, his face straight. Ben and Miranda looked at him with horrified looks. "I'm kidding. I know you two are going on your honeymoon." He winked at Miranda. "I already have the week planned."

"Good," she said rolling her eyes with a smile.

"Now, I have to leave. But I will see y'all soon." Tucker put his hand out for Ben to shake. Ben shook it as he was being beckoned by his mother. When he was gone, Tucker asked: "Can I give you another hug? Or is that pushing it?"

She thought for a second. He was married. She was married. They'd been great friends, best friends for a long time, but that time had come and gone. Or maybe… "Of course you can give me a hug," she told him with a wide smile. Tucker put his arms around her and pulled her close. "I love you, Miranda." Her body stiffened a little. "Congratulations again. I hope he makes you happy."

"He does. He makes me so happy," she said, her words getting muffled in his shoulder. "And he loves Tuck and that is everything."

He took a step back and looked at her, like he was looking at her for the first time. "I'm sorry."

"Excuse me?"

"I know this is a pretty bad time for me to say this," he said gesturing to the rest of the room. "But I am. I really am sorry."

She shook her head a little. "Bless the broken road."

"I hear that." Tucker squeezed her shoulder once and kissed her cheek. "I'll talk to you later."

"Thank you for coming. And for the gift." He started to walk off. "Did Val do anything to you?"

"Huh?"

"After we got divorced or before—did she do anything to you?"

"What'd she tell you?" Tucker asked with a wild look on his face.

Miranda put her hands up. "You know what? I don't even want to know."

"Alright," he said and Miranda watched him walk over to Tuck, hug him and leave.

Two days later, Miranda left work and picked Tuck up from school a little earlier than normal. She and Ben would be leaving for the Bahamas for their honeymoon the next day. She told Ben she was picking him up so he could get ready to go to his dad's house, but what she really wanted to do was spend some quality, one-on-one time with him. He walked down the hall with his book bag on his shoulders. When he saw her, he ran toward her, his bag slapping against his back. She grinned. "Hey, baby!"

"Hey, mommy," he told her hugging her. "Where's daddy?"

The sun shined as they walked out of the building. "I told him that I wanted to pick you up today."

"Because you're leaving?" He asked.

She looked at him and smiled. "Yes, but I'll be back and you'll have a great time with your dad."

"Ben, too?" Miranda nodded. At least he wasn't looking disappointed. They got into the car.

"Do you want to go out to eat or do you want to cook for me?" She asked.

"Cook," he said as she made a turn that would send them home.

"Burgers?" He grinned slyly. "Of course you want burgers." The two of them talked, alone. She wanted Tuck to know that he was still the most important person in her life. "William George."

"Yes?" He asked with grease sliding down his chin. She laughed and handed him a napkin.

"You know you're my favorite person in the whole, wide world, right?"

"Yes," he said confidently.

"Good. As long as you know."

"I know." The conversations she had with him were so simple, but they meant so much to her. She never asked, but she hoped that even at six going on seven, that he understood that. "You told me that before."

"I have to remind you in case you forget."

"I won't." She smiled as he took another bite of his burger. "You're my favorite person in the world, too."

"Me?" She said drinking some of her juice. He nodded. "Thank you."

As they finished eating, Ben walked in the door. "We're in here!" Miranda called out.

He walked into the kitchen

She caught him staring at her. He hugged Tuck and kissed her on lips and then on the cheek. "Where's my burger?" He asked.

Tuck patted his stomach. "In here." The three of them laughed. Ben sat down at the table and picked a French fry off of her plate. "Mommy might make you one."

"Would you, mommy?" Ben said looking at her. "Could you _please_ give me something to eat?" He raised his eyebrow. Miranda shook her head at them. "Please."

"He said 'please,' mommy," Tuck said stuffing a fry in his mouth and chasing it with his drink.

"I said 'please'."

On the plane, Ben took her hand. "I don't like this," he said kissing her knuckles.

"What?" Miranda asked. "Do you have a bad feeling?"

"No, no, no. Nothing like that." She touched her chest. "I just don't like seeing you without your ring."

He giggled softly. "I didn't want to have to spend any more time in the security line than I had to."

"You could have told me to take mine off," he said gesturing to his ring. Her gaze followed and she looked at his finger. It always made her heart skip a little when she saw his wedding band. She'd picked it out specifically for him, white metal with a black diamond. Miranda had looked at dozens of rings, but when she saw this one, he had to get it. He loved it.

"I did. You don't listen." She kissed his cheek. "You're like Tuck. I tell you to put it in your carry-on, you keep it on your finger and get felt up by TSA." Ben chuckled. "Can you look in the front part of my bag and give me my ring? It's in a little, padded envelope."

Ben stood up and retrieved it. "Damn, you wrapped it up like it holds the secrets of the universe."

"Shut up. I just really love it. You did well."

"You picked it out!" He said with his hand on her thigh, rubbing the fabric of her peach and white summer dress, pulling it up a little. He thought he was slick. She pretended not to like it, but she really enjoyed it. They still hadn't had made love yet and the sexual tension in her body was nearly at its max. She slapped his hand away, playfully.

She looked at Ben in his cargo pants and Black t-shirt, looking very hip. "Hey, I just gave you options. You just made the actual choice."

"Sure, sure," Ben said shaking his head. "I guess the picture of this particular ring with twelve circles around it was just a… a hint?" She nodded with a wide smile. Miranda put the ring on and admired it for a while. "But it definitely looks good on you, baby."

It really was a beautiful ring. One of her favorites. It was an 18K white gold diamond ring. It was perfect. "Thank you, baby." She put her head on his shoulder and groaned. "I cannot wait until we land."

"Miranda, we're not even halfway into our trip."

"I know," she whined. "But I am exhausted."

"How was your last surgery?" He asked trying to take her mind off of the fact that they still had a while to go.

She sighed. "I took not one, but two tumors out of my patient." Ben winced. "But he is doing fine and he'll be fine if he stops smoking."

"Think he will?"

"I think… I think people do what they want to do," she said thinking about her patient, Robert Feldman. He was a nice guy, but she worried about him like she did all of her patients.

Ben touched her chin. "It'll be okay." She responded with a kiss.

Miranda put on her headphones and listened to music while they flew. She'd always been okay with flying, but after a plane crash had claimed the lives of a few of the doctors at Seattle Grace, she was always a little uneasy in the air. Ben knew this and held onto her nearly the entire trip. He only let go when they were eating or when they used the restrooms. At some point, Miranda had realized that it wasn't about her fears, but more so that he just wanted to hold on to her. And while she loved her personal space, she let him do it. Seven hours later, they were at their destination. The Bahamas.

The passengers of Flight #90910 walked off of the plane and into the bright sun like zombies. While waiting for the shuttle that would take them to their hotel, Miranda and Ben struck up a conversation with an older couple celebrating their twentieth wedding anniversary. When the other couple left, she turned to him and asked: "Think we've got what it takes to make it that far?"

He shook his head. "Naw." Miranda's heart dropped as they were able to grab a shuttle. So what was the point? She thought. In the shuttle, her nostrils flared as her mind swirled. Why go through the trouble of starting a relationship and deciding to join their lives if longevity wasn't the goal? She knew it sounded corny, but she wanted this thing with Ben that had started as a simple crush to become the stuff of legends. She was pissed, but she wasn't going to tell him that. "Are you done being mad?" He asked with a sly smile. She wanted to slap it off of his face. Ben nuzzled his face in her neck. She hated when he did that when she was trying to be mad at him, but it felt so good, she found herself stuttering.

"I'm n—I w-wasn't mad. You just don't think we have what it takes." She shrugged.

He put his lips to her ear. "Because I _know_ we do, Miranda," Ben said fiercely. "You're my wife. I didn't marry you just because I wanted to try the whole marriage thing."

"Bu—"

"I married you because I see this going on forever. You know, the whole ''til death do us part' part?" She licked her lips. He was so sarcastic sometimes. But he was so right. Damn it, she hated when that happened. Miranda closed her eyes and leaned into him.

"That is so beautiful, my brother," the driver said suddenly. His accented voice made Miranda turn her head away from the kiss.

"Thanks, my brother," Ben said putting his hand across the seat. The driver put his hand over his shoulder to shake Ben's.

"Uh, no one asked you," Miranda said eyeing the driver in the mirror.

He smiled at her. "Chill, mama," he said, his voice strong. Miranda had to admit, it was very sexy. She twisted her lips to the side, still looking at him. "I've seen a lot of couples; men do stuff and say stuff and I can tell immediately if they mean it or if they're lying so they can get some." Ben and Miranda laughed. "This man is true. Listen to him."

"Hmm, maybe," she said reluctantly.

"She just doesn't want to admit that you're right," Ben said, nodding. Miranda mushed his head. They arrived at the Pink Sands Resort on Pink Sands Beach on Harbour Island. Of course she'd done her research and looked at pictures and reviews, but she didn't think that the sands would _actually_ be pink. Miranda was taken aback by its pure beauty. She'd forgotten what the rest of the world looked like not covered in cement and rain and overrun by hundreds of thousands of people. If their room was anyway near as calming as the island, or the view as beautiful, she didn't see them ever leaving it.

"I'm Ahmad by the way, here's my card," the driver said interrupting her peaceful thoughts. "If you need a ride or anything, you know, call me, yeah? I like you two. I'll give you a reduced price."

"Thank you, Ahmad," Miranda said putting the card into her bra. "I'm Miranda."

"I'm Ben," Ben said as he pulled their bags out of the trunk. They checked in and were led to their room. The bellhop put their bags in the room. Ben tipped him before he walked backwards out of the door. Walking into the room, she instantly felt comfortable. The room was so large. The bed was against the wall, directly in the center, the bedding was entirely white except for a thick blue lining on the bedspread and two blue accent pillows. There was a bed-like chair in the corner of the room, looking absolutely comfy. She would definitely be reading on that chair at some point. The ceiling fan was slowly spinning and the doors to the balcony were wide open.

"Look at this!" She said dropping their carry-on bags onto the bed and running out onto the deck. She ran a hand along the back of one of the two chairs as she leaned on the banister of the deck, closing her eyes. She heard Ben on the phone asking for more pillows. He knew that she loved extra pillows even if she didn't use them all. They were comforting to her. She smiled. What had she gotten herself into? A marriage with a man who totally understood her. A man who would do anything for her, who adored her. She was in for a wonderful journey. Her smiled widened when she started to call his name and he was already wrapping his arms around her.

"About damn time," he said kissing her neck. She could only nod. "This view is amazing."

"I can't believe we get to look at it for a week."

"They even put champagne in the room. Want some?"

"Yes, please," she said bumping him with her body. She was very tired, but he turned her on so much.

Ben moved away and Miranda sat down in the one of the chairs on the deck. She kicked off her shoes and put her feet on the small table in front of her. She closed her eyes for a second. When she had a feeling that she was falling, Miranda's head jerked and she woke up. She was lying in the bed with Ben snoring beside her. His back was to her. She checked the time on the clock on the dresser near the bed. It was 9PM. Five hours had gone by. Seattle was behind the Bahamas by three hours. She got out of bed and found her phone. She turned it off of "Airplane Mode" and called Tucker.

"Hello?" Tuck's small voice said.

"Can I speak to my son, Tuck, please?"

"Mommy! This is Tuck!" He giggled.

"Oh, you sounded like your dad. I was confused." The two of them laughed. "How are you?"

"Good. Daddy's making dinner."

"Remember to brush your teeth before bed."

"I will."

"And you can call me anytime," she told him.

"Daddy said I can't."

"What? Why?"

"He said you'll be busy and that unless it's important, I had to send you a text."

Miranda sucked her teeth. "Yeah, okay, but—I love you, William George."

"I love you, too, mommy!"

"Have fun!" They said at the same time, making each other crack up. Miranda hung up the phone and got back into bed. For a second she thought about getting under the covers, but between the warm weather, the ceiling fan and the open doors, she'd found that the temperature was perfect.

"Are you going to be making that call daily?" Ben asked in a gruff voice.

"N-no, I just wanted to let him know that we made it safely."

Ben chuckled. "Yeah, okay."

She yawned and rolled next to her husband. There it was again. That feeling. "First few hours of our honeymoon and you're in bed sleeping."

He turned over and faced her. "I know you're not talking. I turn my back for one second to get us some celebratory champagne, turn back around and you're knocked out."

"I'd just gotten out of surgery and off of an eight hour plane ride, cut me a little bit of slack." She held up her thumb and her index finger.

"Fine." He grabbed the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss. "I need a shower."

"Yes!" She sighed. "Me too. I feel sticky and dirty."

Ben made a face. "Sounds sexy."

"No, it's not sexy," she said rolling toward the edge of the bed. "It's nasty and I want to shower or take a bath."

"Okay, I'll run a bath for you," he said kissing her once more and climbing out of the bed. He strolled into the bathroom which she hadn't had a chance to see. She followed behind, silently. The bathroom was so beautiful. Painted coral, there was a long walkway to the tub, with two large mirrors that covered the walls. Ben had turned off the lights and lit a few of the candles on the sink and on a small dresser at the foot of the tub. Miranda watched as he ran the water, mechanically. Fingering it. "Hello, Miranda."

She smiled. "Hello, Benjamin."

"I am going to enjoy this honeymoon, since it'll be the only one I get."

"Maybe," she answered laughing. She watched the water fill the huge tub quickly, the bubbles rose to the top.

He stood up and hugged her. "This is going to be amazing." Miranda tucked her arms underneath his arms and put her hand on his shoulders. He stared at her. "Aren't you going to get in the tub? The water is going to get cold," Ben asked staring at her. She stared back, smiling a little. "Oh, let me get my mp3 player to play you some soothing music while you relax." He kissed her nose and walked out of the bathroom. While he was gone, Miranda slipped out of her dress, leaving it in the middle of the floor. She stepped out of her panties and unhooked her bra. She stuck her big toe in the water, it was near hot. She eased into the water, slowly, letting the heat of the water take over her body. It felt so good; she could feel her muscles instantly relaxing. "Okay, I can't find my player, but I have…" His voice trailed off when he saw her in the water. Her bare shoulders and the tops of her breasts just above the water level. She looked up at him and saw him tighten his grip on his phone.

"Are you, uh, going to join me?" She asked seductively.

"I thought you'd never ask." Ben pulled off his t-shirt to reveal his beautiful torso, his muscles contracting as he moved. His skin glowed in the candlelight. He dropped his shorts and his package popped out, ready. Her mouth fell open a little. "It was a long trip. You know I don't like being constricted," he said moving to the edge of the tub with a grin on his lips. He kneeled down and kissed her softly. Then he climbed into the tub and sat opposite her, moving his legs on the outside of hers. "Now I'm wishing that I would have kept on the lights."

"Why?"

"So I can see more of your gorgeous body." She smiled as Ben put his elbow on the edge. He always called her amazing and beautiful and pretty and gorgeous and all of the adjectives that meant that he adored her. When they'd first started dating and getting serious, she thought that he was just spitting game. But he wasn't; he was honest and he loved her. So even when she didn't feel like those adjectives, she accepted them.

"I forgot how well you run a bath," she said swirling the water around with her foot, kicking at the bubbles.

"It's not a proper bath without bubbles. I know you like playing with them." He picked up her foot and started to massage it. She moaned a little. The sound was so soft, but she knew it turned him on, by the slight firmness he put on her foot while massaging it.

There was a little window high on the wall of the bathroom. She glanced up and saw that it was really dark outside. And even with the candles, the room was dark as well. "Feels good?" He asked, his deep voice echoing a little in the long room. "I am having a hard time trying not to climb on top of you." She gasped. "Or pull you on top of me."

Miranda stared at her husband and tried not to bite her lip, but her body was pounding. She was getting turned on by the second. "How long has it been?"

"Too long," Ben said quickly.

"Far too long," she sighed. "I am so ready to make love to my husband."

"I'm ready to make love to my wife." With their declarations, Miranda moved across the tub, their naked bodies touching for the first time . Her chest mashed against his, the water splashing on her face a little. Ben wiped away the bubbles and ran a hand through her hair as he kissed her. Miranda and Ben kissed, passionately. Her hands wandered across his slippery body. He groaned when she took her lips off of his and kissed neck. It was his weakness. Ben put his hand between her legs and for the first time in a long time, she didn't reject his advances. She was his to do whatever he wanted. All she wanted to feel was pleasure. Ben touched her butt and lifted her up a little, his mouth wide on hers. "Are you…?"

"Yes," Miranda answered, falling onto his chest. She was on the pill; and, at this point, even if she wasn't, she would still go through with it. Because there was the aching pain of wanting him to be inside of her. Making love to Ben was always great. He understood just what she needed and though she'd only had sex with two people in her life, she was starting to be the same way with him. His hands cupped her thighs, he teasingly held her over his body. He lightly tapped her with his body, driving her crazy. "Wait…"

"Oh, dear God!" He groaned. "What is it now?" Her boiling frustration mixed with her need to be sexually satisfied, took over her body. Miranda kissed Ben again and moved away from him. It was then that she realized that the water was cool, that it was only the heat shooting from their bodies that kept it from being uncomfortable. She stood up and stepped out of the tub. "Miranda!" She grabbed a towel and walked into their hotel room, legs unsteady, pushing her hair back. "Miranda?" Ben called coming out of the bathroom in a towel as well. "W-what...? Are you okay? Did I…?" She shook her head. "Then what?"

She sat on the edge of the bed and patted the space next to her. He sighed and sat down. Miranda turned to him. "I just didn't want our first time as husband and wife to be in a tub."

"Oh," Ben sighed. "I thought there was a problem."

"No, there's no problem." Ben reached for her towel slowly. She had a half a mind to stop him again just to see him get pissed off. He was so sexy when he was angry. Thinking about it revved her up again. She sank back onto the bed as they kissed. Miranda moved backward. Her head touched a pillow and she pushed it off along with the other ones in her reach. They dropped on the floor. She touched the top of his head, keeping their lips connected. He pulled away and hovered above her, staring right into her eyes. He knew she wanted it as much as he did—maybe more. She smiled at him, touching his beard, tugging it a little. She put her hands around his neck. Brown eyes on brown eyes, her heartbeat sped up. Ben leaned down and moved the towels, tossing them to the floor. His hand ran up her thigh. Miranda rotated her hips at his touch. He kissed her again; she slipped a tongue in his mouth and bit his bottom lip, sucking on it.

He groaned: "Fuck!" There was something about hearing him curse that always put her arousal level on 10. She touched his lips, admiring their softness, wanting them on her own lips, on her body; she just wanted to feel them. He kissed her thumb and she pulled him in for another kiss. Ben kissed her neck, making his way to her chest. He circled her nipples with his tongue slowly, paying her back for having him wait so long. Her nipples stood erect, hard and sensitive. He bit them, making Miranda twist. He held her down and shook his head as he kissed a path down her stomach, chewing around her bellybutton. It always surprised her how much he was into her and her body. Because it damn sure wasn't society's idea of perfect, but Ben told her time and time again that he didn't agree with society's standards. And while every woman was beautiful in their own way, she was beautiful and perfect in every way. Miranda's fingers moved on top of his head as he opened her legs, the night air from the open balcony doors touching her skin. She lifted her hips as Ben's tongue delved into her body.

She released a deep sigh. "M-maybe we should, um… close the doors. Of… of the balcony. Maybe." He shook his head, sliding his tongue from side to side. She wished that she hadn't pushed those pillows off of the bed, she needed them now. She needed something to squeeze and bite. Ben touched her stomach, reaching up to play with her breasts. "Mmmmm." Miranda's breathing got deeper as his fingers took turns with his mouth. "Yesss, damn, Ben. Ea—Baby!" Her hips rose as she orgasmed. Her toes curled and she lifted her foot into the air and slid it across his back. She whimpered, biting down on her lip so hard both sets of her teeth nearly touched. Ben moved back up her body, quickly, kissing her deeply. Tasting herself on his lips always drove her crazy. She smiled into his mouth. While they kissed, she could feel Ben's organ poking her, praying for attention. She pushed his chest, moving him away. He fell back on the bed, his arms in the air. Miranda climbed into them, kissing his chest. She began dragging her fingers along his six-pack. God, he was so fine! Ben touched her hair, pulling it back a little as she lowered her mouth onto him.

He wasn't worried about volume as he groaned loudly. "Shit!" She smiled as she kissed and slid her hands along his body. People said that it was an act of submission, but Miranda always felt so much power while she was between his legs. He was literally at her will. With a few more tugs, Ben was coming, grunting and cursing. She laughed as she fell next to him. He kissed the side of her head. He touched her hand and pulled her on top of him. Ben wrapped his arms around Miranda, caressing her back.

She lifted her hips again and slowly descended onto him. Her mouth formed an "O" shape and she clawed at his chest and moaned loudly, unable to hold back. "Ooohhhh! " She kissed him hard, his teeth scraped hers once, but neither doctor cared. He held her face in his hands as they made love, perfect eye contact. He was good lover, great even. She really hated to compare Ben and Tucker, especially while they were in bed, but Ben was far better…by light years. He knew her body; and appreciated every inch of her every time they embarked on a sexual adventure. Touching every crease and kissing every piece of skin—thankful. And she'd admit it, she'd gotten a little lazy having sex with Tucker particularly during those last years, but Ben awakened something new in her and had her eager to pleasure him because he did the same. She ground her hips on his body, feeling every inch of him. He reached between her legs and touched her making her squeal. "Y-yesss…," she struggled to get out the words. "Please..."

"My pleasure," he said in her ear as he rubbed her body and lifted his body to slide in and out of her. She grabbed his back, spilling over his shoulders, her breasts in his face. He kissed them and bit her.

"Jesus, Ben! I'm… coming!" She shouted, her back straight, her hands on her breasts. "God!"

"I'm with you, baby!" He yelled, holding onto her waist. Suddenly the weeks that their bodies had been away from each other didn't make a difference. It was all about this. This moment when they were both coming at the same time, bodies sweating and voices near hoarse—She was in ecstasy. A pure adrenaline rush.

Her body was moving fast, her heart even faster. Miranda reached up and grabbed her hair, running her fingers through it. "JESUS!" She said as an ocean of relief flowed over her. She exhaled and a tear formed in her eye; it mixed with the sweat and fell on his chest. He didn't notice.

"Actually, they call me Ben," he said in her ear as she collapsed on him. Miranda started to laugh and found that she couldn't stop. Ben joined in. She moved off of him, taking the sheets and wrapping them around her body. It was so dark; and the only light was coming from the candles in the bathroom and the lamp posts on the resort beach. She turned to face Ben. "How do you feel?"

"At first, I was feeling like maybe we shouldn't have, you know… waited all that time, but now, baby…" Her voice trailed off. How could she put it without sounded sex happy?

"It's… You're glad we did?" She nodded. "I know. I feel the same way. I'm sorry if you ever felt like I was rushing you, Miranda."

She shook her head. "No, I realized that if you were pouting, um, or if you were trying to sweet talk me into it, it must mean that you wanted me." He put a hand on her chest, over her heart. "I think I would have been madder if you hadn't been begging for it." She winked at him. She touched his hand that was on her chest, pulling at the hair on his fingers.

"Ouch, Miranda!" He yelped. "You know I hate when you do that." She shrugged and buried her face into his chest. "Get on my nerves," he said pulling her in, touching her back.

"You love it."

She could hear him smile. "I do." Ben slapped her butt and she groaned.

"Damn it!" He ignored her and squeezed her butt, sliding a hand between her cheeks and up her back. "I just want to lay in this bed with you forever. Is that okay?"

"It's fine by me," he said laughing. She laughed, too, but she was kind of serious. She didn't want to think about what was going to happen in six days when they had to leave paradise, leave each other's arms and immerse themselves back into their regular lives. And she loved her regular life, she adored her son, he was the most important person in her life, but she wanted to spend her life with her man. "Let's just enjoy this time, Miranda. Don't think about the time that we have left."

"I wasn't."

"You're a bad liar."

"Uh, excuse me, I am a great liar," she told him turning over. Ben put his arms around her.

"Then what were you thinking about?" He asked kissing her ear.

"Er, fistulas! Yeah, fistulas or something."

"Oh yeah?" He chuckled not believing her. "Miranda Warren—"

"Um, Bailey-Warren," she corrected him. He knocked his body against hers. "Fine, I was thinking about it. Because you'll be gone in a week and then we'll be back to sporadic visits and phone sex." She gestured with her hands.

"Babe—"

"No, I mean, it's okay, but it sucks."

"It does suck," he said crawling over her. "But, I promise. Everything will be fine. We will live and work in the same city again." Miranda yawned and Ben lifted his hand to cover her mouth. They cracked up.

"And stop making promises you can't keep."

"I will look for jobs in Seattle every week. I will make my way back to you and Tuck."

"Oh no! Karaoke is not my thing, Ben Warren." Miranda shook her head wildly. "Nope."

"Just give it a try," Ben said. They were sitting at the bar when there was an announcement about karaoke in the lounge. "Step out of your comfort zone."

"I stepped out of my comfort zone by marrying you," she said in a sassy voice.

"And I appreciate that, but you have a beautiful voice." She rolled her eyes at him. "Then don't sing. I don't care," Ben said. He knew that she couldn't pass on a challenge. She raised her hand as the hostess waved her to the stage.

"What's your name, sweetheart?"

"Miranda," Miranda said with a sweet smile.

"Okay, Miranda. And what are you going to sing for us today?"

Miranda leaned over to the hostess. "Do you have any Whitney?"

"Of course. Of course. She's a crowd-pleaser."

"How about _Saving All My Love_?" Miranda asked.

The woman nodded. "Are you dedicating this song to anyone?" She asked, holding the microphone up to Miranda's mouth.

Miranda put her hand over the microphone. "Are you trying to get me to acknowledge someone?"

"That handsome fellow over there. Is he yours?" Miranda blushed. "I'll take that as a 'yes'." The woman turned to the crowd. "Okay, ladies and gentleman, Miranda here is singing _Saving All My Love_ by Whitney Houston and she's dedicating it to that young man over there." The woman pointed to Ben who had his eyebrows raised.

Miranda picked up the second microphone and listened as the song played. She fixed the strap of her black bathing suit. It was one of her favorite buys for the honeymoon. All black with thin straps with sheer paneling on the side, it drew the attention of every guy on the beach, but the only one she cared about was Ben. She'd kept the suit on from when they went snorkeling earlier. On the lower half of her body was a dark blue sarong that she'd put on while they sat at the bar. She glanced at Ben, a white t-shirt on and black and blue swimming trunks.

 _A few stolen moments is all that we share…_

Miranda used her public speaking voice for most of the song—until she really got into it and she started belting out the song as if she was the one who'd recorded it.

 _We'll be making love the whole night through_

 _So I'm saving all my love for you_

When she got to her favorite part of the song, she was taken aback at just how much she meant the phrase even if it was through a song:

 _No other woman is gonna love you more_

When she was finished, Ben met her at the edge of the stage and kissed her. He put his arms around her. Miranda gasped when he lifted her off of her feet and took her off of the low stage. They continued to kiss, the crowd hyped up by their passion. "Well," the hostess said. "I think we _all_ know what they're going to be up to tonight." Miranda pulled away, her cheeks hot. She and Ben grabbed a few beers from the bar and walked hand in hand back to their room. They put the beers in the refrigerator and ordered room service. They peeled off their swimsuits and jumped into the shower, having more fun. When they were getting dressed, Miranda pulled out the adult-style goody bag that she'd gotten at her bachelorette party. She'd never looked through it properly. Inside was a prepaid gift card, a novel, a pair of earrings, there was a t-shirt and underneath the shirt was another bag. She opened the second bag and was both shocked and unsurprised that a vibrator was inside. That must have been the gift that her winning team from the scavenger hunt received. She shook her head and made a mental note to text her Maid of Honor to both reprimand her and thank her. Miranda saw the bathroom door open up and she hurried to get the vibrator back into its bag and all the other items into the goody bag. She stuffed it into her suitcase and turned her attention back to her husband. They sat down to eat on the deck and watched the families below, moving around, going in for the night, talking loudly and laughing. Her heart leapt.

She and Ben talked quietly. "I can't believe you made me get up there and sing," she said looking at him out of the corners of her eyes.

He gave her a small smile. "Babe, what do you think about growing our family?" Ben asked taking a sip of his beer. Miranda put the cold bottle to her lips—she changed her mind and put it down on the table. "Or… is now not the time to think about that?"

She chuckled, mostly to herself. "There is no perfect time to talk about having kids." He chuckled, too. "But I don't think now would be a good time to do it. Seeing as how you're in California and I'm in Washington. And I'm not hot on the idea of going through a pregnancy alone."

Ben put a hand to his chest. "I didn't mean _right_ now. I meant two or three years down the road."

"When you're still a resident and _maybe_ I'm on the board of the hospital?"

"Never mind, Miranda. All you had to do was say 'no'." Ben finished his beer and started to stand up.

She touched his arm and pulled him to her. He dropped to his knees. He leaned in and kissed her stomach and then her lips. Her voice was a whisper: "I'm not saying _no._ "

"Then what are you saying?"

"I'm saying…that I don't… I don't know." She put her arms over his shoulders, locking her fingers. "I'm saying that we've talked about it before and—"

"Not in-depth."

Miranda drank some of her beer, offering some to Ben. He puckered his lips comically and she put the bottle to them. "I'm also saying that we need to talk about it more."

"Let's do it."

"Not now, Ben. We are in one of the most beautiful places I've ever been and I want to enjoy it. No tension."

"Even if it's good tension?" He asked putting his face between her legs.

She pulled his head up. "Ben Warren! Cut it out."

Ben stood up and went in the room. Miranda stood up as well and leaned over the banister. Her green summer dress blew in the wind. "Can I look in your bag for something?"

"Yeah!" She said absentmindedly.

She continued to people-watch. She'd told Ben that she did want another child, _maybe_ two. But her career had always gotten in the way. And then there'd been no one to have a kid with and now… everything was perfect and she wondered if she wanted to ruin it with a second tiny human. "Baby!"

"Yes!"

"You, uh, want to go down to the beach?" He asked sticking his head out of the room. "Relax a bit?" He walked toward her and put his arms around her body, kissing her neck. She nodded. "Cool. Let's go."

Ben handed her two pillows, a bottle of wine and two glasses. He held a blanket and a small basket. "What's in the basket?"

"Fruit and two sandwiches," he said with a laugh. They walked to the far end of the beach. She thought there would be more people on the beach, but other than a man walking on the beach with his dog and two women doing yoga on some rocks, Miranda and Ben were alone. Ben fixed the blanket on the beach and Miranda plopped the pillows down. They opened the wine and poured some into the glasses. Ben sat between her legs and the two of them watched the ocean kiss the shore and retreat when it wasn't kissed back. Ben's fingers danced up and down her leg. Ben turned around suddenly: "I have an idea."

"Nope. I already know what you're going to say," she said putting her hand on his face.

He kissed her palm and then her fingers. "What am I going to say?" He smiled devilishly. She rolled her eyes at him. She knew he knew that she knew what he was going to say. He just wanted her to say it. "Hmmm?"

"I'm vetoing the idea." She looked down at him and leaned back on the pillows.

"There's no one around," he said glancing around. She followed his gaze. The man and the women were all gone. The dog was gone, too. She twisted her lips to the side. Sex on the beach was a great drink, but Miranda didn't think she wanted to have any. Although it was on her sexual to-do list. She smirked. "So?" She opened her mouth to speak and then snapped it close. "We don't have to."

"I don't know," she said honestly. "I'm nervous. W-what if we get caught? Plus, we bought a hotel room with a bed. How about we use that bed?"

Ben sat up and pulled her up, too. "We don't have to have, um, intercourse." She raised an eyebrow. "I could just go down on you," he said in a soft, deep voice. She bit the corner of her bottom lip. He was so freaky. She told him that and he just nodded. "Plus, I, uh, found something in your bag."

"What?"

Ben reached into the basket and pulled out a small bag. It looked vaguely familiar. "This yours?" He asked swinging the bag.

"I guess. If you found it in my bag." Then it hit her. The vibrator. Her face got extremely warm and the words were stuck in her mouth. She laughed and reached for it. He pulled it up out of her grasp.

"Is this the one you use for phone sex?" Ben asked. She pushed his chest and lowered her eyes at him. "So?"

"What?" She repeated.

"Can I interest you in a make out session; my lips below your hips?"

Miranda lay back on the pillows. "Just make sure no sand… make sure no sand gets in places where it doesn't belong."

"Then try not to move so much," he said kissing her mouth. "And try not to be so…damn… loud." She gasped, her body heating up. She wiped sweat off of her face. Ben turned on the vibrator and then, clicked it off. "Now, you're sure?" He asked. She nodded. He turned it on again. Miranda closed her eyes. The buzzing sound stopped. "Because we don't have to." She groaned. She wanted him to shut up and use the daggone thing. She wanted to feel it, his lips, his fingers—anything! He turned it on a third time.

"Do NOT turn that thing off again," she said through gritted teeth. Ben looked down on her, the moonlight shining right on them, like a little spotlight. Only she hoped that no one was paying attention to their show.

"Or what? What are you going to do?" He asked. She just looked at him and crossed her arms. Ben moved up her body and kissed her, biting her chin. She unfolded her arms and put them around him. "Oh, is that what you're going to do? Hug me?" They laughed as he put the device against her lower half and she was so stunned that she didn't burst immediately. While Ben played below her waist, Miranda breathed heavily and looked around, making sure they wouldn't be seen. She yelled, her hands going to her mouth. Ben turned the vibrator up a notch as she came, hard. Ben kissed her to muffle her screams. They mixed with the sound of the ocean. Ben pulled down her dress and kissed her lips. "I…love…you. So much!" She managed to get out.

"I love you, too," Ben said putting a hand behind his head. He finished his wine and opened a beer. He leaned over to kiss her cheek as she finished coming down from her high. She put her head on his chest and he put his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. She felt so good. He stroked her arm as they looked up at the stars. Satisfaction.

On the last day of their honeymoon, Miranda and Ben fell into the bed, making love to the sounds of the air conditioner blowing, the occasional ringing of their cell phones and the voices of people walking below their balcony. Miranda and Ben lay in bed, their breaths fast. "Man!" Ben exclaimed.

"What?" She asked pulling the covers up to her neck.

"I love being married." Miranda scrunched up her face, fully confused. "I get sex any time I want."

"You mean anytime I want?" She said stretching.

"Yes, that, too."

Miranda and Ben packed up and were soon flying through the air, on their way home. Miranda stayed at the house and rested while Ben picked up Tuck. "Mommy!" Tuck shouted, bursting into her room and jumping on the bed.

"Shoes, William George," she said. She kissed his cheek. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you, too." Tuck smiled revealing a grin with a missing tooth.

Miranda sat up quickly. "Where's your tooth?! What happened?" Miranda grabbed her son's face and looked at the space between his teeth.

He shrugged. "It just came out," he laughed. "It was wiggly."

"Okay, but where is it?" She asked again.

"Daddy gave it to Ben. It's in the living room." Tuck raced out of the room and down the stairs.

"Miranda!" Ben called from downstairs. "I'm going to get some food. I'll be back."

"What?!" She said readjusting her pillow.

"He's going to get food," Tuck said coming into the room holding a small bag.

"Tell him okay."

Tuck ran to the top of the stairs. "Okay!"

"Alright, I love you guys." Miranda and Tuck echoed the phrase. Tuck sat on the edge of the bed and Miranda focused all of her attention on him. She asked about his week with his dad and his wife and his tooth, his games and practices, anything she could think of. While they waited for the food, they decided to watch a movie, so they flipped through the channels trying to find one. They landed on "Megamind" and watched it until they both fell asleep. An hour later, Miranda woke up to Ben's brown eyes staring at her. He was kneeling on the floor.

"You're so creepy."

He kissed her and pushed back her hair. "I am going to miss this."

She ran a hand down her face. "What's 'this'?"

"Coming home to you and to Tuck. Our little family." Miranda felt tears prick her eyes. Ben saw them and apologized.

She shook her head. "You leave tomorrow." He nodded. "And I shouldn't be on the verge of tears because you're not going off to war, you're just going several…long miles away," she said using her shirt to dab at her eyes. "It just gets harder every single time."

"I'm sorry, baby," Ben said apologizing again. Miranda told him to stop. It wasn't him. It was the situation. Seeing him maybe twice a month wasn't ideal, but it was for the greater good and she had to remember that. She told him this. And he kissed her. "Hungry?" She nodded. "Then let's go eat. I got your favorite food from your favorite spot."

"Get in bed and finish watching this movie with me first." Ben smiled as she moved Tuck over so there was enough room for him to squeeze in. He put his arm around her, his warm body on hers. They watched the movie for a long while. "Ready to go and eat?" She asked over her shoulder.

"What's the rush?" Ben asked her kissing her back. Miranda smiled to herself, this was going to work, she thought. This is what she'd remember when he was on that plane back to California. The little things that made what they had special. Miranda lifted her hand and admired her ring. It was official. She'd managed to find a second love. Something most people never did and it turned out that the second was even better than the first. And she would get it right this time. She would be thoughtful and considerate. Just like she'd vowed to do a week ago. But right now… she was content being in bed with her husband, their son sleeping right next to them. _Their son_. She was still getting used to that phrase. Ben saw Tuck as his son and she had no problems with it; she was undoubtedly grateful. It was all so easy. And she never imagined that it would be that easy; that everything would fall into place as smoothly as it had. Then again she'd never imagined she would get a man a perfect as Ben either. She'd been wrong on that note, though she'd never admit it. Miranda smiled to herself. Her eyes watched the movie, but Miranda wasn't processing any of it. She was thinking about how she used to be afraid of the magnitude of her relationship with Ben. But she wasn't anymore; she didn't have to be. He made her confident and she loved loving him. She loved him so much that she married him and took his last name. And who knew? Maybe he would find a job closer to Seattle. Or maybe not. Maybe their family would grow. Or maybe it would be just the three of them. It didn't matter. But Miranda was going to slow down, relax and enjoy her present and her future with Ben and whatever came their way.

-The End-


End file.
